AGRIC,  DEPT, 


Main  Lib. 


By  L.  B.  LOGAN, 

IV 


Youngstown,  Ohio. 


270409 


m 


B 


";:v-v,:;^-^:  WW^ilf 

f/    "•  O>Z_^1>_£: 


THE  LATE 


Pxo^essox 


S. 


l  Slates  <\>nnnissioner  of  Fish  and  Fisheries,  an  unsalaried  office,  from 
1871  to  the  date  of  his  death,  August  19,  1887. 


HON.  S.  FEE, 
Fish  Commissioner  of  Kansas. 


t/HE  Chrystalization  of  ten    years  experience  in  the 
United  States.     Gathered  from   more  tham  10,000 
Successful  Carp  Guitarists,  in  all  parts  of  the  country,  and 
combined   with  the  best  teachings  of  the  centuries  of   ex- 
perience in  Europe. 

By  L.  B.  LOGAN, 

OHIO. 


PRICE,  IN  PAPER  COVER,  65c. 

PRICE,  IN  CLOTH  COVER,    ......     $1.00 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  I. 

INTRODUCTION  OF  CARP  INTO  THE  UNITED  STATES,  AND  A  BRIEF  RE- 
VIEW OF  TH^IR  HISTORY  PRIOR  TO  THAT  DATE. — Inland  Fisheries. — 
20,000  Acres  of  Ponds  and  Their  Product. — Capt.  Robinson's  Importation. 
— Importation  of  J.  A.  Poppe. — Importation  of  the  U.  S.  Commission. — 
Gratuitous  Distribution  of  Fry. — Sale  of  Fry 9-11 


CHAPTER  II. 

DESCRIPTION  OF  THE  CARP. — THE  VARIKTIES. — Gauckler,  Hessel, 
Mulertt. — Scale  Carp. — Mirror  Carp. — Leather  Carp. — Golden  Carp. — Blue 
Carp. — Their  Characteristics  and  Differences.-  The  Best  Variety 12-16 

CHAPTER  III. 

THE  ECONOMIC,  PHII.OSOHPIC,  PATRIOTIC  AND  SANITARY  REASONS 
FOR  CAKP  CULTURE. — Water  Farming. — Water  Resources  — Drouths. — 
Over-Draining  Land. — Freshets. — Husbanding  the  Waterfall. — Fish  Har- 
vests.— Increased  Value  of  Farms. — Fishing  Fever. — Panacea. — Ice  Har- 
vest...  17-19 


CHAPTER  IV. 

CHARACTER,  LOCATION  AND  CONSTRUCTION  OF  PONDS. — Prime  Fac- 
tor.— Favorable  Conditions. — Ravines  and  Gulches. — Control  of  Water. — 
Sky  Ponds. — Spring  Ponds  — Dams  and  Embankments. — Plan  of  Carp 
Pond. — Shallow  and  Deep  Water. — Section  of  a  Pond. — Artificial  Ponds. — 
Draining  Ponds. — The  Monk. — Objections. — Flumes  of  Stone  or  Brick. — 
Monk  Improved. — Bottom  Overflow  and  Drain.— Defects. — Remedies. — 
Screen  Box. — Modified  Bottom  Overflow  and  Drain. — Placing  the  Flumes 
in  the  Dam. — Overflows,  Freshets  and  Storms. — Bottom  Draft  Overflow. 
....  20-31 


i  OXTENTS. 

CHAPTER  V. 


CLASSES  OF  CARP  PONDS  AND  THEIR  PURPOSES. — Live  Fish  Markets. 
—Systematic  Ponds.— The  Hatching  Pond.— Depth  of  Water.— Water 
Level.— Plants  For.— Size  of  Pond.— Waves,  Their  Effect.— Selection  of 
Spawners. — Number  of  Males  to  Females. — Feeding  the  Spawners. — Size 
of  Fry  in  the  Fall.— Removal  of  Fry.— Difference  of  Ponds  in  Different 
Latitudes.— Effect  of  Cold.— The  Stock  Pond.— Its  Depth.— When  Stocked. 
—How  Many  to  the  Acre. — Increase  of  Weight. — Marketable  Size. — When 
to  Sell. — Spawn  in  the  Stock  and  Market  Ponds. — Pike  in  these  Ponds. — 
Proportionate  Size  of  Market,  Stock  and  Hatching  Pond. — Sale  Pond. — 
—Winter  Pond.— Market  Pond.— Stock  Pond.— Hatching  Pond.— Mixed 
Carp  Culture.— Spawning  Bed.— One  Variety.— Objections.— Removal  of 
Eggs.— Use  of  Boughs 32-40 


CHAPTER  VI. 

TAKING  THE  FISH  FROM  THE  PONDS. — IMPLEMENTS  FOR  HANDLING 
THEM.— THE  SHIPMENT  OF  YOUNG  FRY.— Drawing  the  water.— Remedy- 
ing a  Panic. — When  to  Begin  Taking  Out. — Weights  and  Records. — General 
Purpose  Seine.— Bag  Net. — Sinker  Net. — Canvas  Stretcher. — Taking  Carp 
Alive  to  Market. — How  to  Make  the  Boxes. — Importance  of  Selling  Alive. 
— Educate  the  People  to  It. — Shipping  Carp. — Cans. — Their  Size. — Treat- 
ment Before  Shipment. — Best  Temperature. — Proportion  of  Water  and 
Fish. — Working  Express  Companies  and  Agents. — Wooden  Jacket  Cans. 
— Cans  With  Flaring  Sides.— How  to  Fill. — Shipping  Season. — Spring  and 
Well  Water.  41-47 


CHAPTER    VII. 

KNEMIES  OF  THE  CARP. — How  TO  DESTROY  THEM. — Carp  Are  Canni- 
bals.—Domestic  Fowls.— Water  Snakes,  Etc.— Shot  Gun  Policy.— Craw- 
fish Traps. — Protecting  Dams. — Muskrats. — Protection  of  Dams. — Traps. — 
Brimstone  and  Salt  Petre.— Mink.— Turtles.— Birds.— Other  Fish.— Black 
Headed  Minnow.  Insects,  Larvai  and  Bugs.— The  Water  Asell. — The 
Water  Flea.— The  Snail.— The  Boat  Fly.  Its  Destructiveness— Yellow 
Banded  Water  Beetle.— Its  Larva.— The  Black  Water  Beetle.— Its  Cocoon. 
—Its  Grub.— How  to  Destroy  Them.— The  Dragon  Flies.— Libellula, 
Aeshma,  Agrion.— Their  Copulatio'n.— Mode  of  Depositing  Their  Eggs.— 
Their  Grubs.— Their  Destructiveness.— Their  Enemies.— An  Interesting 
Enemy.  — Piscivorous  Plants:— A  Fish  Eating  Plant.— How  to  Get  Rid  of 
the  Enemies.— Erratum..  48-66 


CONTENTS.  8 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

THE  DISEASES  OF  THE  CARP  AND  ALLIED  DIFFICULTIES  IN  POND 
CULTURE.— Indications  of  Disease.— Fungus  Growth.— Remedies.— Polyp 
Asphyxia.— Dropsy.— Injuries.— Hospital.— Poud  Difficulties  in  Sum- 
mer.—Lack  of  Water  Supply.— Lack  of  Oxygen.— Heat.— What  to  Do 
—Absorption  and  Evaporation.— Winter  Difficulties.— Depth  of  Water.— 
Poisonous  Gasses.— Holes  in  the  Ice.— The  Help  of  Age.— Cornstalks  or 
Rye  Straw.— Fallacy  of  Bank  Chimneys 67-71 

CHAPTER  IX. 

THE  ARTIFICIAL  FEEDING  OF  CARP.— Natural  Food.— Not  Vegetarians. 
—A  Floating  Island.— Digestive  Organs  of  Plant  and  Flesh  Eating  Ani- 
mals.— Natural  Food  of  Carp. — Nutritious  Matter.  Albumenoids. — Car- 
bohydrates.—Their  Uses  in  the  Body.— The  Nicklas  Rule.— Difficulty  of  Ex- 
ecution.— Material  at  hand. — Desideratum. — Combination  of  Food.— First. 
— Second. — Third. — Preservation  of  Food. — Fourth, — Food  for  Young  Fry. 
— Increasing  the  Home  Supply. — Production  of  Natural  Food.— Cheap 
Food. — Waste  of  Slaughter  Houses,  Breweries,  Distilleries,  Starch  Fac- 
tories.— Suspending  Flesh  Over  the  Water. — Whole  Wheat. — Bread  of 
Coarse  Shorts. — Blood  as  a  Moistener. — Platform  Feeding.— Calling  the 
Fish  to  Meals.— Do  They  Hear? 


CHAPTER    X. 

ON  THE  HEARING  OF  FISH.— The  Controversy.— Methods  of  Working 
the  Problem. — The  Organs  Indicate  the  Faculty. — Rank  Estimated  by 
Structure. — The  Human  Ear.— -Sound  Waves. — The  Drum  Head. — The 
Eustachian  Tube.— Movement  of  the  Membrane. — The  Labrynth  or  Inner 
Ear. — Nerve  Motion. — Ear  Stones. — Rudimentary  Ear. — Ear  of  the  Fish. 
—  The  Ear  Bones. — Auditory  Nerve. — Vestibule. — The  Three  Semicircular 
Canals. — The  Bulbs. — The  Fish  Ear  a  True  Ear. — Head  Bones  a  Medium. 
—Fitted  for  the  Water  Not  the  Air.— Not  Applicable  to  All  Fishes.— Pecu- 
liarities of  the  Carp  Ear.— The  Air  Bladder.— Illustrated.  78-87 


CHAPTER  XI. 

WATER  PLANTS  FOR  CARP  PONDS. — Remedial  Agents—Beautiful  and 
Essential  Accessories. — Gravel  and  Stone  Bottoms. — Measure  of  Life. — 
The  Ornamental  and  the  lTseful. — Crowfoot  Family. — Water  Lilly  Fam- 
ily.— Water  Milfoil  Family. — Evening  Primrose  Family. — Parsley  Fam- 
ily.— Primrose  Family. — Buckwheat  Family. — Hornwort  Family. — Arum 
Family. — Duckweed  Family. — Cat-tail  Family. — Pond-weed  Family. — 
Water-Plantain  Family. — Frog's-bit  Family. — Iris  Family. — Rush  Fam- 
ily.—Sedge  Family.— Grass  Family.— Cryptogamia 88-90 


4  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  XII. 

FISH  AS  FOOD.— Fish  Flesh  Compared  with  Animal  Flesh.— The 
Needs  of  the  Stomach.— Analysis  of  Beef  and  Fish  Tea.— Mixed  Diet.— 
Fish  Pie.— Chowder.— Improved  Health.— St.  Paul's  Idea.— The  Carp  as  a 
Food  Fish.— Compared  with  Our  Best  Native  Fishes.— Not  Fi  tfor  Food  in 
the  Spawning  Season.— Proper  Weight  for  the  Table.— Preparation  for  the 
Cook.— Cooked  Like  Other  Fish. .  . .  91-94 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

POT  POUBI. — Untouched  Viands.— German  Carp. — Hybridization. — 
How  to  Distinguish  the  Sex  of  Carp. — The  Milter. — The  Spawner. — 
Spawning. — Effect  of  Change  of  Temperature.— How  to  Tell  When  They 
Are  Spawning. — Size  and  Character  of  Eggs. — Time  to  Hatch. — How  to 
Catch  Carp.— A  Gamey  Fish.— Bait  to  Use.— Difficult  to  Seine.— Feeding 
Time.— Concussion.— Its  Effect. — What  to  Avoid. — Cutting  Ice  no  Injury. 
— Waves  on  Ponds. — Protection  Against  Them 95-99 


APPENDIX. 


INCREASE  OF  CARP. — PRICES. — HARDIHOOD,  ETC. — From  Letters  of 
J.  W.  Long,  J.  C.  Alexander,  Ira  H.  Ewart,  W.  A.  Day,  B.  F.  Biggs,  E.  C. 
Wells,  J.  W.  Thorp,  L.  C.  Ezell,  E.  L.  Valentine,  L.  J.  Blankenship,  J.  J. 
Thomas,  R.  E.  Parcher,  Joseph  Brunot 103-106 

SALE  OF  CARP  FOR  TABLE  USE.— From  Letters  of  V.  Stillabower,W-. 
Bunker,  W.  B.  Lee 106-107 

CATCHING  CARP.— From  Letters  of  E.  B.  Brouster,  Chas.  F.  Johnson, 
James  Gay,  Peter  James 107-108 

CARP  IN  MINERAL,  SULPHUR  AND  SALT  WATER. — From  Letters  of 
Jacob  Gierisch,  C.  M.  Clay,  A .  Combs. 108-109 

(JREAT  VITALITY  OF  CARP.— From  Letters  of  R.  T.  W.  Duke,  V. 
Stillabower,  Bull.  U.  S.  Fish  Com.,  E.  S.  Jenks 109-111 

Do  NOT  HIBERNATE.— Catching  Carp  Through  the  Ice.— From  Letters 
of  C.  C.  Loser,  Jac  Knopp,  S.  W.  Colten,  W.  A.  Pursel  111-112 

GROWTH  OF  CARP. — From  Letters  of  Elias  Cattrill,  J.  C.  Murdock,  S. 
I).  Comfort,  W.  A.Day,r.  C.  Stanfield,  S.  E.  Williamson,  A.  J.  Dennis,  E. 
H.  Leinen,  D.  M.  Darby,  J.  V.  Hoakison,  R.  H.  Hudson,  D.  N.  Kern, 
Bull.  U.  S.  Fish  Com  .  .  112-116 


CONTENTS.  5 

SEASON  OF  SPA  WNINNG.— TEMPERATURE  OF  WATER  AND  LENGTH  OF 
TIME  REQUIRED  FOR  EGGS  TO  HATCH  IN  DIFFERENT  TEMPERATURES, 
ETC.— From  Letters  of  W.  H.  Westhafer,  J.  H.  Bournes,  Jas.  T.  Hawkins, 
E.  P.  Underwood,  D.  N.  Kern,  B.  F.  Carroll,  W.  C.  Rose,  John  W.  White, 
Jas.  W.  Waldo,  L.  J.  Blankenship,  0.  G.  Beetle,  John  Goodwine,  Jr.  116-120 

SOME  GENERAL,  PHASES  OF  CARP  CUI/TURE. — A  Fine  Table  Fish. — J. 
J.  Strannahan. — One  Way  of  Cooking  Carp.— Turning  Out  the  Hogs  to 
Make  Room  for  Carp.— Water  Supplied  by  Wind  Mill.— Bottom  Puddled 
by  Hogs.— Carp  Are  Cannibals.— An  Easy  Way  to  Multiply  Ponds.— Fish 
Kept  in  the  Cellar.— Native  Fish  Delay  Success.— 50,000  Carp  Sold  in  15 
Days. — Trap  and  Automatic  Feeder. — Keeping  an  Open  Space  in  a  Pond 
in  Winter.— Notes  From  a  Carp  Diary 120-129 

Advertisements  .  . .  130-136 


Page  31,  under  illustration  should  have  been  the  name,  "Anti-choke 
Overflow." 

Page  77,  fourth  line  from  top,  c-o-u-r-8-e  should  have  been  c-o-a-r-s-e. 
Page  109,  letter  should  have  been  signed  C.  M.  Clay. 
Page  111,  letter  should  have  been  signed  E.  S.  Jenks. 


ILLUSTRATIONS. 


The  late  Prof.  Spencer  F.  Baird,  United  States  Fish  Com'r.  .Frontespiece 

The  Hon.  S.  Fee,  Fish  Com'r  of  Kansas Frontespiece 

The  Scale  Carp 14 

The  Mirror  Carp 15 

The  Leather  Carp.  16 

Plan  of  Carp  Ponds 23 

Longitudinal  Section  of  Pond '. 24 

A  German  Monk 25 

The  Monk  with  Clamps 27 

Bottom  Overflow  and  Drain 28 

Sliding  Center  Board 20 

Anti-Choke  Overflow 31 

Carp  Pond  with  Spawning  Annex 39 

Bag  Net ...  42 

Sinker  Net 42 

Canvas  Stretcher  for  Handling  Carp 43 

Wooden  .Jacket  Shipping  Can 45 

Muskrat  Trap  50 

The  Water  Flea  54-66 

The  Water  Asel 54-66 

The  Boat  Fly 55 

Larva  of  Dragon  Fly 55 

The  Yellow  Banded  Water  Beetle 55 

The  Larva  of  Same 55 

The  Black  Water  Beetle 56 

The  Dragon  Fly 57 

Fish  Eating  Plant,  Ttricularia  Vulgaris  (Bladdersvort) 60 

Its  Mode  of  Capturing  Fish  62 

Hind  View  of  the  Head  of  Carp— A  82 

Left  Ear,  Seen  From  Outside — B 82 

Otolitl)  of  Ili.uht  Eur,  S<M>M  From  Outside— C   82 

Middle  KMT  of  Man  Viewed  From  the  Front — G 83 

Air  Hladder  of  Carp  with  Second   and  Third  Vertebne— I) 83 

I  nncr  L'-l'l  Ear  of  Man  Seen  From  Outside — E : 83 

Section  of  the  Same — F , s:j 

Sweet  Scented  Water  Lilly 100 


INTRODUCTORY. 


In  the  infancy  of  any  industry,  there  is  always  much  mis-direction  of 
thought,  effort  and  means.  This  is  necessarily  so,  for  those  who  teach 
must  think,  and  the  best  of  thought  grows  only  on  the  tree  of  experience, 
and  to  gain  experience  requires  time  to  grow  the  tree.  Systems  do  not 
develop  in  a  single  season,  and  infallibility  among  systems  is  as  rare  as  it 
is  among  men.  In  all  methods  judgment  must  be  exercised  as  to' time, 
place  and  circumstances,  and  upon  this  judgment  must  depend  individual 
success  or  failure. 

American  carp  culturists  owe  much  to  the  pioneers  of  public  thought 
on  this  question,  through  the  courtesy  of  the  public  prints.  This  debt  of 
gratitude  is  greatest  to  those  whose  thought  took  the  form  of  pamphlets 
and  books,  in  which  list  I  am  glad  to  include  my  warm  personal  friends, 
Hugo  Mulertt,  of  Cincinnati,  O.,  Hon.  I.  B.  W.  Steedman,  of  St.  Louis, 
Mo.,  George  Finley,  of  Pittsburg,  Pa.,  and  Valentine  Stillabower,  of  TCdin- 
burg,  Indiana.  The  United  States  Fish 'Commission,  under  whose  aus- 
pices carp  were  introduced  into  this  country,  has  through  the  Bulletin  of 
the  Commission,  under  the  direction  of  C.  W.  Smiley,  of  Washington,  D. 
C.,  contributed  largely  to  the  correct  literature  on  the  subject.  Could  this 
printed  matter  have  reached  the  hands  of  the  numbers  now  engaged  in 
carp  culture,  it  would  probably  have  been  sufficient.  But  with  the  rapid 
growth  of  interest  in  carp  culture,  and  the  constantly  multiplying  ponds 
and  owners  thereof,  added  to  the  fact  that  the  editions  of  all  these  other 
works  but  one  are  exhausted,  there  has  arisen  a  demand  for  a  work  that 
is  abreast  of  the  growing  industry.  This  demand  joined  with  the  Syren 
voices  of  friends  who  were  acquainted  with  the  valuable  sources  from 
which  I  have  been  drawing  information  during  the  past  flve  years,  has 
lured  me  on  to  the  publication  of  this  work. 

In  addition  to  the  writings  of  those  persons  already  named,  cheerful 
recognition  is  given  to  the  aid  derived  from  the  writings  of  Hessel,  Horak 
and  Nicklas.  Where  the  exact  language  of  any  other  writer  is  used,  due 
credit  is  given.  But  where  their  thoughts  are  interwoven  each  with  the 


8 

other  or  all  with  our  own  thought,  justice   demanded  that  we  bear  the 
responsibility. 

Mrs.  Logan  who  has  held  my  hobby  during  the  weeks  of  my  labor 
on  this  book  has  just  returned  it  to  me,  saying,  put  it  in  the  introductory. 
You  owe  her  much,  I  owe  her  more.  Together  we  stand,  she  and  I,  and 
launch  our  book  on  the  carp  ponds  of  America.  May  the  pennies  it  costs 
you  return  to  you  in  hundreds  of  dollars  saved,  and  made  by  and  through 
its  instruction.  THE  AUTHOR. 


CHAPTER  I. 

INTRODUCTION   OF  CARP  INTO  THE  UNITED  STATES,   AND  A  BRIEF  REVIEW 
OF  THEIR   HISTORY   PRIOR  TO  THAT   DATE. 

Carp  arc  here,  and  here  to  stay.  Whence  and  how  they  came  are 
matters  only  interesting  as  a  part  of  their  history,  which  is  classical  and 
ancient.  In  the  earlier  days  of  their  culture  in  America,  this  history  was 
of  much  more  importance  than  it  is  now.  Then,  it  gave  them  a  prestige 
that  commended  them  to  our  good-will;  nowt  from  more  than  a  quarter 
of  a  million  of  carp  ponds  in  this  country,  they  bring  their  own  unim- 
peachable credentials.  They  have  made  for  themselves,  in  the  United 
States,  a  record  even  more  satisfactory  than  that  which  is  registered  of 
them  in  Germany,  and  this  latter  excels  all  their  other  European  history. 

Were  this  work  intended  for  those,  only,  who  now  have  carp,  and 
who  are  more  or  less  familiar  with  what  has  been  published  on  the  subject, 
it  would  matter  little  whether,  or  not,  anything  was  said  on  the  part  of 
the  carp;  but  in  educating  those  persons  uninformed  on  the  subject, 
history  becomes  fundamental. 

There  is  no  authentic  account  of  the  introduction  of  carp  into  Europe. 
It  is  only  certain  that  it  occurred  many  centuries  ago,  and  that  the  stock  was 
brought  from  Central  Asia  or  Persia.  In  Bohemia,  Austria  and  Southern, 
Central  and  Northern  Germany  they  have  long  been  domesticated,  and 
are  plentiful  in  the  large  rivers  of  Europe,  from  whicja  many  of  fabulous 
size,  as  reported,  have  been  taken.  They  are  mentioned  by  Aristotle  360 
years  before  Christ,  and  by  Pliny  50  years  after  Christ. 

The  largest  inland  fisheries  of  Europe  are  the  carp  fisheries,  simply 
because  the  carp,  of  all  fish,  is  the  most  excellent  pond  fish  known  to  the 
world.  Of  all  Europe,  Austria  is  credited  with  the  earliest  efforts  at  the 
production  of  carp,  and  has  the  renown  of  the  largest  artificial  ponds  on 
the  globe.  Here  the  culture  of  carp  is  traced  back  to  the  year  1227.  In 
England  their  culture  is  traced  to  the  year  1500,  in  France  to  the  year 
1525,  and  in  Denmark  to  the  year  1660. 

The  character  of  the  ponds  established  in  Europe  will  be  best  appreci- 
ated when  it  is  understood  that  ponds  built  at  Bohemia,  in  Austria,  in  the 
latter  part  of  the  fourteenth  century,  are  not  only  still  in  existence,  but, 
their  banks  improved  with  the  solidification  and  vegetation  of  the  cen- 
turies, they  are  to-day  the  admiration  of  all  comers.  The  ponds  of  the 
Princes  of  Schwarzenburg,  altogether,  cover  an  area  of  at  least  20,000 
acres  of  ground.  This  would  be  one  fifth  larger  than  an  ordinary  town- 
ship in  the  United  States.  All  of  these  ponds  can  be  drained  at  the 
pleasure  of  their  owners,  and  are  beyond  doubt  the  most  extensive  of  the 
kind  in  the  world.  Their  product  amounts  to  about  500,000  pounds  of  carp 
a  year.  Other  very  large  ponds  exist  in  the  Provinces  of  Silesia  and 


16  PRACTICAL  CARP  CULTURE. 

Bradenburg,  while  hundreds  of  ponds  covering  a  few  acres  each,  are  scat- 
tered over  the  entire  country,  and  one,  at  least,  is  found  on  nearly  every 
large  farm.  The  carp  produced  in  these  ponds  form  the  chief  fish  diet  of 
the  people.  They  are  taken  alive  to  market,  are  assorted  according  to 
weight  and  kept  alive  in  tanks,  those  of  about  the  same  weight  being  kept 
in  the  same  tank.  They  are  sold  alive;  then,  if  the  purchaser  desires  it, 
tho  marketman  kills  and  dresses  the  fish  to  his  order.  At  fairs  and  public 
gatherings,  carp  are  sold  alive,  killed  and  cooked  to  order  and  eaten  then 
and  there  by  the  purchasers — a  luxury  with  which  the  American  railroad 
and  fair  sandwich  cannot  compare. 

This  outline  gives  the  carp  a  classical  and  an  historical  standing  that 
must  command  for  it  great  respect. 

The  history  of  the  introduction  of  carp  into  the  United  States  has 
never  yet  been,  so  far  as  we  have  seen,  collectively  and  succinctly  placed 
before  the  people;  nor  is  it  the  purpose  here  to  occupy  space  with  details. 
The  earliest  importation  was  made  b.y  Captain  Henry  Robinson.  About 
the  year  1830  he  brought  carp  from  Holland  and  placed  them  in  his  ponds 
at  Newburg,  New  York.  From  these  ponds  they  escaped  into  the  Hudson 
river,  destroying  every  chance  of  practical  results  from  his  effort. 

In  1872,  Mr.  J.  A.  Poppe,  of  Sonoma,  California,  made  a  trip  to 
Europe,  and  returning  to  the  United  States  from  Germany,  as  a  matter  of 
private  enterprise  and  speculation,  brought  carp  home  with  him.  He 
made  special  arrangements,  and  every  provision  for  their  safe  and  success- 
ful transportation,  traveled  with  them  and  gave  them  his  personal  atten- 
tion, and  yet  lost  nearly  all  of  them.  He  started  with  83  carp,  of  all  sizes, 
from  three  feet  long  to  the  size  of  a  steel  pen,  and,  notwithstanding  his  great 
care,  but  five  of  them  arrived  alive  at  his  ponds  in  California.  The 
largest  died  first,  and  the  very  smallest  only  survived.  On  the  5th  day  of 
August,  1872,  these  five  tiny  carp  were,  with  much  solemnity  and  many 
misgivings,  planted  in  his  pond.  In  the  following  May,  the  original  five 
measured  16  inches  each,  and  there  were  about  three  thousand  of  their 
progeny.  From  these,  California  and  the  adjacent  states  and  territories 
received  their  first  stock  of  carp.  Though  it  looked  like  a  speculative 
funeral  on  the  day  that  Mr.  Poppe  planted  his  five  linger  ling  carp,  yet  it 
was  the  birth  of  a  bonanza  of  which  the  farmers  of  this  country  are  now 
reaping  the  benefit.  It  paid  Mr.  Poppe  handsomely,  and  demonstrate* I 
that  carp  could  be  successfully  imported  to  and  would  thrive  in  America. 
The  success  of  this  venture  probably  had  its  effect  on  the  national  fish 
commission,  and  contributed  to  the  formation  of  their  purpose  to  bring 
carp  to  Una  country. 


COMMISSION'S  IMPORTATION. 

Mr.  Rudolph  Hessel,  a  German  of  much  experience  in  carp  culture, 
and  now  in  charge  of  the  Government  ponds  at  Washington,  D.  C.T  wa* 
employed  by  the  national  fish  commission  to  bring  the  carp  to  this 
country  and  to  oare  for  them  when  here.  He  arrived  from  Bre*ie~n 


PRACTICAL  CARP  CULTURE.  11 

345  carp  of  different  varieties  and  sizes,  namely,  227  mirror  and  leather 
carp  and  118  scale  carp. 

On  the  26th  day  of  May,  1877,  these  were  planted  in  the   Druid  Hill 
Park  ponds  at  Baltimore,  Md.,  and   remained  there  while  the  ponds  at 
Washington  were    being  prepared  for  them.     They  did  not  do  well  the 
first  season,  and  the  distribution  of  young  fry  did  not  begin  until  the  fall 
of  1879.     Then  6,203  were  sent  out  to  273  applicants  from  24  States.      In 
1880,  31,443  were  distributed  to  1,374  applicants  from  34  States  and  Terri- 
tories.    In  1881,  113,605  were  distributed  in  lots  of  15  to  20  to  each  appli- 
cant.   By  this  time  many  of  the  fish  commissions  of  the  different  States 
and  Territories  that  were  supplied  early  by  the  national  commission,  had 
young  carp  of  their  own  raising  and  begun  to  distribute  them.    Prominent 
among  the  States  early  and  largely  distributing  young  carp  may  be  named 
Missouri,  Illinois,  Kansas,  Texas,  South  Carolina,  Kentucky,  Tennessee 
and  Iowa;   New  York,   Pennsylvania  and  other  States  and  Territories 
falling  quickly  into  line.     Each  year  since  then  the  commissions  of  the 
several  States  and  Territories,  as-  well  as  the  national  commission,  hava 
had  a  constantly  increasing  number  of  fish  to  dispose  of,  and  the  appli- 
cants for  them  have  been  without  number.     It  is  very  safe  to  estimate 
that  these  several  commissions  have  supplied  not  less  than  500, 000  different 
persons  with  carp.      Many  persons  applied  and  were  supplied  more  than 
once.    The  second  season  after  the  first  distribution  by  the  national  com- 
mission many  enterprising  citizens  had  young  carp  to  sell,  and 'with 
Yankee  ingenuity  and  energy,  pushed  their  interests,  sold  all  they  had  at 
from  $5.00  to  $  10.00  a  hundred  and  had  orders  booked  for  the  next  hatch. 
The  number  of  those  persons  having  young  carp  to  sell  increased  many 
fold  each  year,  until  now  they  are  very  numerous.    Add  to  those  supplied 
by  the  Government,  those  who  supplied  themselves  by  purchase,  and  the 
whole  number  will  not  fall  short  of  1,000,000  persons  that  have  tried  carp 
raising.      Some  failed  in  the  first  year's  experience  and  some  have  failed 
since,  but  the  number  of  failures  is  constantly  decreasing,  while  the  num- 
ber of  successes  is  as  constantly  increasing.     This  is  brought  about  by  the 
lessons  of  experience  bought  dearly,  or  obtained  cheaply  from  others.      It 
is  quite  certain  that  as  great  a  per  centum  of  the  wh«le  number  have 
succeeded  in  the  growing  of  carp  as  would  have  succeeded  in  the  raising  of 
poultry.     The  account  of  their  success,   the  method  of  attaining  it,  the 
table  qualities  of  the  fish,  etc.,  must  form  the  subjects  of  other  chapters. 
Suffice  it  to  say  that  there  is  not  a  State  or  Territory  in  the  Union  without  its 
carp  ponds ;  that  many  of  our  rivers  and  streams  have  carp  in  them,  that 
have  escaped  from  ponds  through  freshets,  overflows,  broken  dams,  etc., 
while  in  an  occasional  emergency  they  have  been  dumped  in  the  streams  by 
the  Government's  agents,  to  save  them  from  loss,  while  some  streams  in 
Missouri  have  been  stocked  with  them  by  the  commission.     Carp  weigh- 
ing from  8  to  12  pounds  have  been  taken  from  the  Ohio,  the  Illinois,  the 
Missouri  and  other  rivers.     Many  of  these  catches  have  been  eaten  by 
epicures,  and  their  flesh  pronounced  excellent. 


CHAPTEB  IJ. 

DESCRIPTION  OF  THE  CARP.— THE  VARIETIES. 

Among  the  many  descriptions  of  the  carp  family,  we  consider  tho 
following  the  beet,  and  fully  sufficient  for  their  general  identification. 
Gauckler,  a  German  authority,  says:  "The  carp  is  high  on  the  back, 
compressed  laterally  and  covered  with  scales.  The  back  is  more  or  less 
arched.  The  head  is  pyramidal,  the  mouth  is  very  small,  having  two 
pairs  of  barbels,  of  which  one  pair  is  attached  to  the  upper  lip,  and  the 
others,  which  are  longer,  are  at  the  corners  of  the  mouth.  The  general 
color  of  the  carp  is  golden  brown,  rather  bright  in  the  case  of  those  which 
live  in  running  water,  and  darker  with  those  which  have  lived  always  in 
ponds.  Often  blueish  reflections  manifest  themselves  in  the  dorsal 
region,  and  an  orange  tint  colors  its  sides.  The  belly  is  a  yellowish 
white.1" 

Dr.  Rudolph  Hessel,  Superintendent  of  the  Department  of  Carp 
Culture  in  the  United  States  Fish  Commission,  at  Washington,  District 
of  Columbia,  says:  "The  carp  Cyprinus  Carpio  of  the  family  Cyprinidse, 
has  a  toothless  mouth,  thick  lips,  and  four  barbels  on  the  upper  jaw.  In 
place  of  the  usual  teeth  of  the  mouth,  there  are  a  number  of  stout  teeth  on 
the  pliaryngeal  bones,  which  are  arranged  in  three  rows.  It  has  one 
single  dorsal  which  is  longer  than  the  anal.  Roth  of  these  fins  have  at 
their  origin,  on  the  anterior  edge,  a  strong  ray  which  is  serrated  in  a 
downward  direction.  The  caudal  is  a  semi-circular  shape,  and  the 
natatory  bladder  is  divided  into  two  sections  with  connecting  air  passages. 
The  scales  have  an  entire  edge,  and  the  body  is  compressed  on  the  sides. 
The  general  color  of  the  back  and  sides  is  a  dark  olive  brown,  the  abdo- 
men often  of  a  whitish  or  orange  tint.  The  coloring  depends,  as  with  all 
fishes,  partly  upon  the  age  and  season,  partly  Upon  the  water." 

Hugo  Mulertt,  of  Cincinnati,  O.,  writing  for  AMERICAN  CARP  CUL- 
TURE, says:  THE  SCALE  OR  NOBLE  CARP.  Cyprinun  carpio,  Edelkarpfen, 
Le  Carpe.  The  body  is  stout  and  elongated,  sides  compressed,  head 
naked,  small  and  supplied  with  well  developed  lips,  the  upper  of  which 
carries  two  pairs  of  barbels,  one  larger  than  the  other.  The  mouth  is 
toothless,  though  the  fish  is  provided  with  masticating  organs  which  are 
situated  far  back  in  the  throat.  The  color  of  the  fish  is  generally  dark 
olive  brown  on  the  back  and  sides,  though  it  will  vary,  according  to 
circumstances;  the  abdomen  may  be  either  yellowish,  white  or  orange 
tinted.  The  entire  body  is  covered  with  silvery  scales  of  a  uniform  size. 
The  dorsal  fin  is  situated  on  the  middle  of  the  back,  extending  nearly  to 
the  tail  and  consists  of  three  spincms,  the  third  one  of  which  is  serrated, 
and  fifteen  to  eighteen  soft  rays.  These  characteristics  afe  far  as  the 


PRACTICAL  CAKP  CULTURE.  13 

barbe 
all  the  varieties. 


naked  head,  the  barbels,  and  the  dorsal  fin  are  concerned,  are  leading  for 


THE  MIRROR  OR  KING  CARP.  C.  rex  cyprinorum,  Spiegelkarpfen, 
Carpe  a  cuir.  This  variety  has  a  higher  body  than  the  preceding  and  is 
but  partly  covered  with  scales,  which  are  of  different  size  and  shape,  some 
of  them  three  or  four  times  the  size  of  the  scales  on  the  noble  carp.  This 
variation  has  given  rise  to  the  false  impression,  that  carp  shed  their  scales, 
the  fact  apparently  seeming  to  prove  the  idea.  The  color  of  the  scales  is 
deep  black  in  the  center,  and  edged  with  silvery  white,  giving  each  scale 
the  appearance  of  a  miniature  mirror,  hence  the  name.  The  skin,  where 
it  is  not  protected  with  scales,  is  of  a  creamy  yellow  on  the  back  inclining 
to  olive  brown,  and  yellowish  on  the  belly. 

THE  NAKED  OR  LEATHER  CARP.  C.  nudus,  Lederkarpfen.  Aa  the 
name  indicates,  this  variety  is  very  nearly  or  entirely  naked,  its  skin  as 
soft  as  that  of  a  catfish.  Its  shape  is  the  same  as  the  mirror  carp,  differing 
only  in  color,  which  is  brownish  gray  and  the  belly  white. 

\ 

THE  GOLDEN  CARP.  C.  aurens,  Goldkarpfen,  Carp  d'or.  This 
variety  is  very  popular  in  France  and  cultivated  to  a  considerable  extent. 
It  must  not  be  confounded  with  our  common  gold  fish,  as  it  is  no  wise 
identical.  Its  flesh  is  salmon  colored,  (that  of  other  varieties  being  white) 
and  of  an  exceedingly  fine  flavor,  which  together  with  the  rich  golden 
color  of  its  scales  is  due  to  the  locality  and  the  rood  upon  which  it  subsists. 
In  all  other  respects,  this  variety  resembles  the  noblo  carp,  as  does 

THE  BLUE  CARP.  C.  cocruleus,  JUauerkarpfen ,  Carpr,  bleu,  which  is 
highly  esteemed,  especially  so  in  and  around  the  city  of  Leipzic,  Saxony. 
When  cooked  it  still  retains  the  blue  color  of  its  scales,  though  this  is 
ingeniously  imitated  by  placing  some  other  variety  in  vinegar  for  a  while, 
the  scales  thus  turning  blue.  In  such  cases  the  fish  is  known  as  u  Karp- 
fen  W«w"  instead  of  "Blauer  Karpfen,"  the  name  of  the  genuine  fish. 
The  large  pond  situated  in  the  city  park  of  Leipzic,  in  the  rear  of  the  opera 
house,  and  known  as  the  "Swan  Pond"  (Schwanen  Teich),  is  stocked 
exclusively  with  blue  carp. 

To  these  descriptions  we  wish  to  add  that  the  mouth  is  of  moderate 
size  and  is  formed  for  bottom  feeding,  with  the  upper  jaw  covering  the 
lower  one.  That  the  lateral  line  is  continuous ;  that  the  dorsal  fin  is  very 
long,  and  the  anal  fin  is  very  short,  the  body  as  a  whole  resembling  that 
of  the  buffalo  fish. 

The  varieties  of  carp  are  no  doubt  the  result  of  domestication,  cultiva- 
tion and  hybredization.  Whether  the  original  stock  introduced  from  the 
fresh  waters  of  Central  Asia  were  of  the  mirror,  leather  or  scale  variety, 
or  all  of  these  varieties,  is  not  known.  These  are  now  the  three  principal 


14 


PRACTICAL    CARP   CULTURE, 


varieties  where  ever  the  carp  are  cultivated,  and  as  this  is  to  be  a  practical 
book  it  is  with  these  only  that  we  will  deal. 

In  the  scale  variety  the  entire  body  is  clad  with  scales,  which  are  about 
the  same  size  as  the  scales  of  our  ordinary  native  fish.  It  is  considered  by 
many  to  be  the  best  of  the  varieties.  It  is  slimmer,  longer  and  more 
graceful  than  either  of  the  other  varieties,  and  very  much  more  prolific; 
while  it  is  generally  conceded  that  it  does  not  grow  as  fast  as  either  of  the 
other  varieties,  yet  it  certainly  grows  fast  enough  to  satisfy  most  people. 
Hon.  I.  B.  W.  Steedman,  in  1884,  then  Chairman  of  the  Missouri  Fish 
Commission,  in  his  work  on  carp  culture  in  that  State,  says  that  the  scale 
carp  in  the  State  ponds  at  St.  Louis  reached  a  weight  of  eight  pounds  in 
two  years.  Those  who  want  more  growth  than  that  will  be  hard  to 
satisfy* 


The  second  year  after  the  distribution  of  carp  by  the  Government, 
gome  individuals,  who  were  breeding  carp  for  stocking  purposes,  were  so 
unfortunate  as  to  have  gold  fish  in  the  pond  with  their  scale  carp,  and  as 
the  gold  fish  is  of  the  carp  family,  a  .hybridization  took  place,  producing 
an  inferior  progeny,  which  were  placed  on  the  market  and  sold.  This 
misfortune  gave  other  individuals,  with  an  egotistical  turn  of  mind,  an 
opportunity  to  grind  their  axes,  which  they  forthwith  proceeded  to  do,  at 
the  cost  of  the  scale  variety  of  carp.  They  did  not  have  the  courage  to 
attack  the  individuals  and  hold  them  responsible  for  their  misdeeds,  but 
assailed  the  fish,  on  the  principle  that  the  case  would  then  be  all  their  own 
as  the  fish  could  not  answer  back.  Their  purpose  was  to  exterminate  the 
scale  carp,  destroy  the  business  of  those  who  had  pure-blooded  carp,  and 
boom  an  accident  of  their  own — a  so-called  scaleless  carp,  which,  like 
hairless  dogs  and  wooden  legs,  will  not  produce  their  like.  How  far  short 
of  the  mark  they  have  fallen  is  demonstrated  by  the  constant  favor  given 
to  this  variety,  as  much  certainly  as  to  either  of  the  others  in  every  State 
and  Territory  of  the  Union.  Rudolph  Hessel  supposes  the  gcal©  carp  to 


PRACTICAL    CARP    CULTURE. 


15 


be  the  original  species  improved.  We  give  this  variety  this  much  atten- 
tion, not  because  of  its  superiority  to  the  other  varieties,  but  to  help  right 
an  attempted  injustice. 

The  mirror  carp,  as  the  cut  shows,  is  but  partly  covered  with  scales, 
which  are  sheeny  and  bright  and  beautiful,  reflecting  the  light  in  gorgeous 
tints  and  colors,  and  from  this  peculiarity  of  the  scales  it  obtained  its  fan- 
ciful and  thoroughly  descriptive  name.  -These  scales  are  irregular  both  in 
size  and  shape,  and  are  scattered  along  the  back  and  the  sides  of  the 
belly  from  gills  to  tail,  and  along  either  side  on  the  lateral  line  from 
gills  to  tail  is  a  broken  row  of  irregular  sized  scales,  while  about  the 
gills  and  tail  a  few  scales  are  also  scattered.  The  rest  of  the  body  is 
naked  of  scales.  The  row  of  irregular  scales  on  the  lateral  line  from  gills 
to  tail  is  the  practical  matter  of  difference  between  the  mirror  and  the 
leather  variety. 


The  difference  in  appearance  between  the  mirror  and  leather  carp,  as 
before  observed,  is  in  the  absence  of  rows-  of  the  scales  on  the  lateral 
line  on  the  sides,  otherwise  they  are  much  the  same  in  form,  in  shape  and 
in  covering.  The  scales  on  the  leather  carp  frequently  vary  in  number 
and  in  location,  like  the  spots  on  a  pig,  they  may  be  found  anywhere  on 
the  body.  Sometimes  more  of  them,  and  sometimes  less  of  them;  some- 
times in  one  place,  sometimes  in  an  other,  but  usually  along  the  back  and 
about  the  tail  and  fins. 

These  last  two  varieties,  the  mirror  and  leather  carp,  grow  more 
rapidly,  but  do  not  multiply  so  fast  as  the  scale  variety ;  but  none  the  less 
are  probably  more  plentiful  and  numerous  than  the  scale  variety.  The 
cause  of  this  lies  in  two  facts:  First,  because  of  the  greater  number  of 
these  imported  by  the  U.  S.  Commission.  The  natural  consequence  being 
that  the  Fish  Commissions  of  the  several  States  sent  out  more  of  these 


10  PRACTICAL    CARP    CtTLTUBE. 

varieties  than  of  the  scale  variety.  Second,  because  even  the  scale 
variety  in  its  progeny  tends  toward  the  leather  and  mirror  varieties,  and 
adds  largely  to  their  ranks.  It  is  also  true  that  the  mirror  and  leather 
varieties  in  their  progeny  frequently  contribute  to  the  scale-clad  tribe, 
but  not  in  as  great  proportion  as  the  scale  variety  contributes  to  them. 


The  cuts  used  here  were  made  expressly  for  use  in  this  work,  by  Hugo 
Mulertt,  of  Cincinnati,  O.,  who  made  the  drawings  from  live  carp  raised 
in  Ohio,  and  persons  at  all  familiar  with  carp  will  recognize  how  perfectly 
true  they  are  to  life. 

The  question  most  frequently  asked  by  persons  about  to  stock  a  pond 
ia  "which  variety  is  best?"  This  is  a  question  that  no  culturist  in  this 
country,  unless  governed  by  prejudice  or  a  selfish  motive,  is  prepared  to 
decide.  No  German  authority  that  we  know  of  has  ever  attempted  to 
decide  it.  The  varieties  stand  out  like  the  favorite  breeds  of  poultry.  Men 
are  partial  to  old  friends  (the  kind  they  have)  because  unfamiliar  with 
the  varieties  of  those  he  knows  only  by  reputation.  We  have  thousands 
of  letters  coming  from  every  State  and  Territory  in  the  Union,  from 
honest  men,  and  true,  and  men  of  fine  discernment,  and  each  is  perfectly 
satisfied  with  that  variety  which  he  produces,  and  has  no  criticism  for  the 
varieties  that  others  produce.  Our  own  conviction  is,  that  all  pure- 
blooded  varieties  are  excellent,  and  that  even  with  the  eye  of  your  judg- 
ment closed,  you  can  not  make  a  mistake  in  your  selection. 

The  golden  carp  and  blue  carp  are  two  varieties  but  little  known  in 
this  country.  We  are  not  aware  that  any  golden  carp  were  ever  brought  to 
America.  The  United  States  Fish  Commission  did,  however,  in  January, 
1883,  import  some  blue  carp,  only  four,  however,  were  alive  on  the  9th  of 
February  of  the  same  year,  and  they  were  badly  diseased;  hearing  noth- 
ing further  of  them,  it  is  quite  probablo  that  they  died. 


OHAPTEB  in, 

THE   ECONOMIC,    .PHILOSOPHIC,    PATRIOTIC    AND   SANITARY    REASONS   FOB 

CARP  CULTURE. 

For  years  our  American  farmers  in  the  pursuit  of  systematic  economic 
farming  have  vied  with  each  other  in  applying  labor,  experience,  intelli- 
gence and  capital  to  make  their  lands  most  productive  with  the  least  out- 
lay. Their  attractive  homes  and  the  comforts  that  surround  them  bespeak 
their  successful  efforts.  Still  there  is  a  branch  of  economic  and  success- 
ful farming  to  which  they  have  not  applied  themselves.  One  which  is  of 
more  importance  in  its  relation  to  the  value  of  farms  and  the  other 
branches  of  agriculture  than  appears  possible  on  a  superficial  view.  And 
this  branch  is 


WATER  FARMING, 


There  are  not  many  farms  without  either  sheets  of  water,  natural 
ponds  or  pond  sites,  of  which  we  will  treat  in  due  time.  Money  has  been 
ipent  freely  in  ditching,  tiling  and  underdraining  to  make  such  spots  blos- 
som as  the  rose.  Where  these  efforts  have  succeeded,  unaccompanied  by 
ague  and  malaria,  the  ground  has  been  dearly  purchased,  the  remainder 
of  the  farm  has  been  injured  and  the  beauty  of  the  landscape  has  been 
marred.  The  cost  of  ditching,  tiling,  underdraining  and  redeeming  will 
be  a  big  price  for  tho  land.  The  farm  has  been  injured  by  being  robbed  of 
its  water  reservoir,  and  the  face  of  the  landscape  has  a  black  eye  instead 
of  the  silver  sheen  of  water.  How  much  better  to  mold  the  swail,  morass, 
or  bog  into  a  thing  of  beauty,  give  it  banks  and  limits,  if  so  it  will  con- 
tribute equally  well  to  our  revenues  while  adding  greatly  to  our  comforts 
and  pleasures. 

The  water  resources  of  every  farm  should  be  taken  under  as  complete 
and  perfect  control  as  it  is  possible  to  get  them,  aside  from  the  purpose  of 
water  farming.  The  following  editorial  article,  taken  from  the  October 
number  of  the  National  Journal  of  Carp  Culture,  1887,  covers  the  thought 
we  wish  to  present: 

**  The  present  long,  continued  and  very  widespread  drouth,  accounts  of 
which  have  come  to  us  from  several  States  relating  the  exhausted  con- 
dition of  small  streams,  springs,  ponds,  and  even  wells  that  never  went 
dry  before  and  that  now  are  as  dry  as  the  middle  of  the  highway,  has  at 
length  reached  Ohio.  Beginning  in  the  southwestern  part  of  the  State 
and  traveling  north  and  east  drying  up  ponds  and  streams  and  exhausting 
wells  until  in  many  places  water  for  household  purposes  is  being  hauled 
several  miles.  Those  who  had  ponds,  whether  natural  or  artificial, 


18  PRACTICAL   CARP   CULTURE. 

whether  used  for  fish  culture  or  not,  have  realized  what  a  blessing  an 
extra  supply  of  water  is  and  how  well  even  unfarmed  water  pays  for  the 
space  it  occupies.  The  attention  of  agriculturalists  and  agricultural  jour- 
nals in  this  country  has  been  so  long  directed  to  the  cutting  of  water 
courses,  the  underdraining  of  land,  and  the  precipitating  of  the  rainfall 
into  the  streams  and  rivers  that  they  have  finally  succeeded  in  overdoing 
what  they  set  out  to  accomplish,  until,  as  our  friend,  Hugo  Mulertt,  in 
accounting  for  the  great  floods  in  the  Ohio  river  that  did  so  much  damage 
at  Cincinnati  and  other  points  within  the  past  three  years,  describes  the 
rainfall  as  being  received  in  tile  drains,  rushed  into  the  valleys  or  depres- 
sions of  the  earth,  then  off  through  larger  sewers  or  open  water  courses  to 
the  creeks  and  streams  and  thus  to  the  river  almost  within  the  hour  that 
it  fell,  robbing  the  soil,  flooding  the  river  lands,  carrying  destruction  on 
its  breast,  and  leaving  a  drouth  and  its  dread  consequence  to  follow  in  its 
wake.  We  do  not  underestimate  the  value  and  advantage  of  a  proper 
systein  of  underdrainage.  But  we  would  place  our  agricultural  friends 
upon  their  guard  against  rushing  the  rainfalls  beyond  their  reach  in  time 
of  need.  Husband  the  waterfalls  in  ponds,  making  them  as  deep  as  the 
character  of  the  land  will  permit.  One-third  of  the  area  covered  by  the 
water  should  be  from  two  to  eight  feet  deep,  the  remainder  of  the  nren 
spreading  out  to  a  few  inches  at  the  margin.  Then  with  a  good  well  ami 
a  windmill  supply  your  cattle  though  and  with  an  overflow  conduct  the 
waste  water  to  your  pond.  Your  well  will  by  the  better  for  the  drain  upon 
it  and  your  pond  will  just  about  maintain  its  level  during-  ordinary  sen- 
sous,  and  its  full  body  of  water  will  be  preserved  as  a  resource  against 
time  of  drouth.  Farm  this  body  of  water  by  cultivating  fish  in  it  and  you 
will  have  the  regular  harvest  of  fish  besides  the  harvest  of  water  in  the 
time  of  drouth.  If  you  have  ponds  that  have  dried  out  make  them  deeper 
and  turn  the  water  of  your  well  into  them.  If  you  have  no  ponds  build 
them  at  once  and  your  labors  and  expenditures  will  be  a  continual  source 
of  joy  and  profit  to  you." 

In  the  waters  planted  with  carp,  the  fish  harvest  comes  twice  a  year. 
When  the  birds  begin  their  sougs  and  all  nature  arouses  from  the  leth- 
argy of  winter;  when  the  barns  and  cellars  are  well  nigh  empty,  and  the 
exchequer  running  low,  the  two  and  three-year-old  caip  become  a  source 
of  revenue.  Again  in  the  fall  when  the  freshets  of  spring,  the  drouths  of 
summer,  the  north  winds,  and  the  sun's  scorching  rays  have  made  their 
impression  felt  on  the  resources  of  the  farm,  and  the  farmer  is  depressed 
with  care,  and  weighed  down  with  anxieties;  the  carp,  unaffected  by 
these  extremes,  will  come  to  the  rescue  and  balance  the  accounts.  Then, 
whilst  the  farmer,  with  a  vast  amount  of  care  and  tireless  effort,  pro- 
vides six,  and  even  seven  months  food  for  the  warm-blood  animals,  and 
doles  it  out  to  them  day  by  day ;  the  carp,  very  accommodatingly,  fasts,  and 
yet  comes  out  in  spring  ready  for  the  market.  We  feel  justified  then, 
in  claiming  for  the  carp  a  very  high  position  among  the  best  of  domestic 
animals. 

We  believe  that  with  general  water  farming,  in  this  country,  the 
utilizatiou  of  springs  and  husbanding  of  rainfalls  in  ponds  and  reservoirs, 


PRACTICAL  CARP  CULTURE.  19 

that  the  rainfall  will  be  more  evenly  distributed ;  that  the  evaporation 
from  the  ponds  in  the  heated  season  will  moisten  and  purify  the  air, 
destroy  disease  germs  and  contribute  to  better  health ;  that  the  immense 
and  devastating  freshets  of  our  great  rivers  will  be  things  of  the  past;  that 
the  nearness  of  water  and  the  evaporations  from  it  will  affect  beneficially  all 
crops,  and  that  our  farmers  in  their  provisions  against  drouth,  like  vacci- . 
nation  for  smallpox,  if  overtaken  by  drouth,  will  suffer  less  from  it. 

A  good  pond  of  water,  under  proper  control,  adds  to  the  beauty  and 
commercial  value  of  any  farm,  in  other  ways  than  those  already  men- 
tioned. No  article  of  diet  is  more  healthful  than  that  of  fish,  with  a  pond 
well  stocked  with  fish  on  a  farm,  it  is  no  trick  to  have  fish  any  day,  and 
every  day  for  that  matter  at  any  of  the  meals  of  the  day.  A  luxury 
provided  by  Providence  in  exchange  for  salt  pork  which  is  the  staple 
meat  of  the  farmer ;  not  of  choice  but  from  necessity ;  fresh  meat  not  being 
available,  and  if  available,  greatly  adding  to  the  cost  of  living. 

A  fish  pond  adds  to  the  home  attractions  of  the  farm  and  makes  it  a 
pleasanter  place  for  the  sons  and  daughters  of  the  home,  a  place  to  bathe, 
to  boat,  to  skate,  and  above  all,  a  place  to  fish.  Where  is  the  boy  or  man 
that  does  not  like  to  angle  for  the  finny  tribe?  If  you  have  him,  send 
him  to  Barnum,  he  has  a  place  among  his  world's  curiosities  for  all  such. 
How  many  farmers  hitch  up  their  teams  and  take  their  families,  or  their 
boys  and  drive  half  the  night  to  reach  a  fishing  ground  by  daylight,  then 
labor  all  day,  rain  or  shine,  and  come  home  in  the  middle  of  the  next  night 
with  a  string  of  small  suckers,  or  other  valueless  fish;  the  team  is  used 
up,  the  whole  party  is  exhausted  and  can't  half  work  for  the  next  three 
days.  Disgust,  prevails  for  the  time  and  a  general  swearing  off  follows; 
but  Lord  bless  you  it's  only  until  the  next  fishing  fever  is  on.  Like  all 
other  fevers  to  which  the  human  family  is  subject,  it  has  it  periodicity  of 
attack,  and  is  recurring  as  the  ebb  and  flow  of  the  tide.  The  panacea  for 
all  these  ills  is  the  carp  pond  on  the  farm.  You  know  where  the  fishing 
ground  is ;  you  have  not  to  hunt  for  it,  and  when  found,  ascertain  that 
others  have  been  there  before  you  and  taken  all  that  were  worthy  of 
capture. 

The  ice  harvest  of  many  ponds  will  pay  better  than  any  crop  that 
could  be  grown  on  the  ground  occupied  by  the  pond.  This  is  in  localities 
where  the  ice  can  be 'disposed  of;  where  it  cannot  be  disposed  of,  if  har- 
vested and  used  in  the  dairy  department  of  the  farm  it  will  pay  a  good 
dividend,  and  in  the  heated  season  it  is  always  a  luxury  in  the  house. 

Other  reasons  might  be  assigned,  but  these  are  sufficient  to  demon- 
strate the  importance  of  water  farming,  and  the  pleasure  and  profit  to  be 
derived  from  it. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

CHARACTER,   LOCATION  AND  CONSTRUCTION  OP  PONDS. 

In  the  construction  of  ponds  water  is  the  prime  factor,  because  neces- 
sarily the  first  consideration  of  the  builder.  The  water  supply  determined 
upon,  the  soil,  its  water-holding  and  vegetation-producing  capacity,  the 
size  and  location  of  the  pond  or  ponds  to  be  constructed,  must  next  be 
considered.  These  are  the  forethoughts  of  pond  making;  the  after 
thoughts  are  plentiful  enough,  as  every  pond  builder  knows. 

If  the  conditions  of  soil  and  water  are  favorable  the  labor  is  greatly 
simplified.  If  unfavorable  then  skill  and  patience  and  perseverance  will 
be  required  to  overcome  the  unfavorable  conditions.  But  these  latter  are 
matter  of  special  thought,  and  since  no  general  provision  would  apply  to 
them,  they  must  simply  be  laid  aside  until  each  condition  and  situation  is 
known  and  can  be  studied  and  provided  for  by  itself. 

In  a  dry  time  it  looks  a  simple  thing  fo  build  a  dam  across  a  dry 
stream,  or  at  the  open  end  of  a  gulch  or  ravine,  and  so  form  a  pond.  If 
the  gulch,  ravine  or  stream  is  of  any  length,  or  drains  any  considerable 
territory  of  the  rainfalls,  an  ordinary  dam  and  overflow  will  be  of  no  con- 
sequence. We  know  of  some  beautiful  ponds  constructed  in  just  such 
places.  It  requires  skill,  money  and  labor.  A  very  correct  idea  of  the 
dam  necessary  in  such  a  location  will  be  obtained  by  viewing  some  of  the 
mill  dams  built  in  rivers  and  streams.  The  requirements  are  excavations 
on  sides  and  bottom  down  to  a  firm,  waterproof  base,  then  heavy,  sub. 
stantial,  symmetrical  structures  from  basi-  to  summit.  The  latter  being 
level  from  side  to  side  the  entire  length  of  the  dam,  spreading  the  over- 
flowing water  into  as  thin  a  sheet  as  possible.  The  carp  pond  dam  on 
other  and  smaller  streams  should  differ  from  the  mill  dam  in  being  wider 
on  the  top,  and  a  few  inches  above  the  desired  water  level  a  six-inch 
stratum  of  coarse  gravel,  extending  from  side  to  side  and  end  to  end  of 
the  dam,  should  be  placed.  This  will  act  as  a  strainer  for  any  ordinary 
freshet,  and  prevent  the  escape  of  the  fish.  The  advantage  of  such  a  pond 
is  that  more  otherwise  useless  and  unsightly  ground  can  generally  be  cov- 
ered, frequently  to  the  extent  of  making  a  pleasure  resort  and  a  place  for 
picnicing  and  boating. 

For  general  pond  purposes,  the  water,  both  in  supply  and  escapet 
should  be  under  the  more  perfect  control  of  the  culturist  than  is  possible 
in  the  ponds  mentioned.  The  way  to  secure  such  control  is  to  dam  the 
gulch  or  stream  higher  up  in  its  course,  and  from  the  backwater,  by  means 
of  open  ditches  or  pipes,  conduct  the  water  in  just  the  quantities  wanted 
to  the  ponds,  which  may  then  be  located  at  your  pleasure  on  either  side 


PRACTICAL  CARP  OULTI7RE.  21 

the  bed  of  the  water  course,  and  beyond  the  reach  of  its  overflow.  It  is 
usually  practical,  then,  to  build  a  series  of  ponds  either  on  the  same  or 
different  levels.  If  on  different  levels,  the  ponds  both  overflow  and  drain 
into  each  other  to  the  lowest  one;  in  time  of  need  this  will  be  found  a 
great  economizing  of  water.  If  on  the  same  level,  or  nearly  so,  each  pond 
must  have  its  own  supply  pipe  and  drain  directly  into  the  bed  of  the  water 
course.  Supply  and  drain  pipes  to  each  pond,  whether  on  the  same  or 
different  levels,  are  both  desirable  and  advantageous  to  the  culturist.  It 
gives  him  absolute  control  ©f  each  pond  independent  of  any  of  the  others. 


SKY  POXDS. 

These  ponds  form  quite  a  class  of  the  successful  carp  ponds  of 
America.  Th^y  are  dependent  nearly,  or  entirely  on  the  rainfall  and  the 
water  shed  from  adjnce*nt  land.i.  Here  husbanding i«f  the  water  is  every- 
thing. It  is  accomplished  chiefly  by  making  the  pond  bottom  and  em- 
bankments of  soil  impermeable  to  water,  so  that  the  only  loss  is  by  evap- 
oration. Without  such  bottoms  and  banks  this  class  of  ponds  must  fail. 
They  fill  slowly,  unless  in  very  wet  weather.  Where  they  receive  the 
water  shed  of  considerable  territory  they  should  be  protected  against  sud- 
den inundation  in  heavy  rainfalls  by  side  ditches  with  sluice-gates  lead- 
ing to  the  pond,  so  that  when  these  gates  are  closed  the  shpd-wa*er  is 
carried  off  beyond  the  dam  and  made  powerless  for  evil  to  the  pond  andl 
its  inhabitants.  The  water  supply  of  these  ponds  maybe  greatly  rein- 
forced by  a  windmill  supplying  a  cattle  trough  from  the  well,  and  the 
overflow  of  the  trough  conducted  to  the  pond. 

Below  or  to  one  side  of  the  main  p^nd  of  such  an  establishment 
should  always  be  a  pond  or  two  of  considerable  depth,  but  the  surface 
need  not  be  great.  Then  in  the  drawing  and  fishing  of  the  main  pond 
you  will  not  be  caught  with  dry  weather  or  a  freeze-up  in  winter,  with 
your  stock  on  hand  ana  no  pl^ce  to  safely  quarter  them.  The  lower  or 
side  ponds  need  be  but  little  below  the  level  of  the  main  pond.  If  empty 
at  the  drawing  off  of  the  main  pond  they  can  be  rilled  with  the  first  water 
taken  from  the  high-water  level  by  means  of  pipes  or  sluices  constructed 
for  that  purpose.  These  smaller  ponds  will  be  of  great  advantage,  too,  as 
breeding  and  hatching  ponds,  or  as  reservoirs  for  stock  and  market  fish. 


SPRING-  PONDS. 

The  size  of  these  ponds  should  be  in  proportion  to  the  amount  of 
water  flowing  from  the  springs,  bearing  in  mind  that  the  evaporation  and 
absorption  every  hour  is  equal  to  about  250  gallons  to  the  acre.  The  rain- 
fall and  water  shed  off  the  immediate  vicinity  will  contribute  to  the 
water  supply.  If  the  height  of  the  springs  will  permit  it,  the  water  com- 
ing Irorn  them  during  the  warm  months  should  be  broken,  aerated  and 
warmed  by  falling  on  wire  netting  and  passing  over  rocks  before  reaching 
the  pond.  In  cold  months  remove  the  obstructions  and  let  the  inflow  bfe 


22  PRACTICAL  CARP  OTTLTURE. 

direct.  The  advantages  of  these  ponds  are  constancy  of  water  supply 
summer  and  winter  and  high  temperature  of  water  in  winter,  usually 
keeping  some  surface  of  the  pond  in  the  immediate  vicinity  of  the  springs 
clear  of  ice,  affording  oxygen  to  the  fish  and  permitting  the  escape  of  any 
poisonous  gases  generated  by  decomposing  vegetable  matter  in  the  bot- 
tom of  the  pond.  The  disadvantages  are  lower  temperature  of  water  in 
summer  time  and  very  small  supply  of  food  carried  by  the  water  to  the 
pond. 

The  best  water  for  carp  ponds  is  that  furnished  by  running  strpancs. 
It  is  aerated,  heated,  and  carries  food  for  the  fish.  The  best  sites  for 
ponds  are  along  the  courses  of  such  streams  or  by  the  feeders  of  mi'ls, 
below  the  basins  of  canals,  etc.  The  sites  for  ponds  will  naturally  sug- 
gest themselves  whenever  they  meet  the  eye.  Nor  is  it  within  the  prov- 
ince of  this  chapter  either  to  indicate  them  all  or  to  furnish  plans  for  the 
construction  of  the  various  embankments  and  dams  necessary  to  the 
varied  character  of  the  sites.  Some  locations  need  but  a  dam,  others 
need  banks  on  two  or  even  three  sides.  The  principle  of  construction, 
however,  is  th.3  same. 


I>AB£S   AND 

The  difficulty  of  repairing  a  dam.  makes  it  necessary  to  build  it  well  in 
the  start-out.  Stake  out  the  line  of  the  embankments,  determine  their 
height  and  allow  ten  per  cent  for  shrinkage;  make  the  base  three  times 
the  height.  Thsn,  in  the  center  of  the  base,  cut  a  ditch  three  to  live  feet 
wide  down  through  the  surface-soil  to  a  sub-stratum  of  the  earth  that  will 
hold  water ;  extend  this  ditch  out  under  the  shoulders  of  the  dam.  Throw 
the  material  taken  from  the  ditch  to  the  outer  side.  This  ditch  must  then 
be  filled  with  loam  (a  small  per  cent,  of  sand,  a  large  per  cent,  of  clay)  or 
good  plastic  clay.  The  filling  should  be  done  in  layers  of  six  to  twelve 
inches  each,  each  layer  carefully  spread  and  thoroughly  tamped.  It  will 
pack  better  if  wet,  even  to  the  point  of  puddling.  When  the  ditch  is  full, 
the  dam  spreads  out  to  its  limits,  and  is  continued  on  up  in  layers  just  as 
in  the  ditch.  If  the  banks  are  to  be  built  from  material  taken  from  the 
bottom  of  the  pond,  which  is  the  most  economical  plan,  and  if  the  material 
is  fit,  put  the  surface  soil  on  the  outer  side  of  the  dam,  and  the  next 
inferior  soil  on  the  inside,  placing  the  very  best  of  your  darn-making 
material  in  the  center  of  the  embankment,  continuing  it  on  up  over  the 
lines  of  the  ditch  to  the  top  of  the  dam,  carefully  tamping  and  packing 
every  stratum  as  it  is  laid  on ;  removing  all  stones,  sticks,  sods  and  other 
debris.  The  dam  should  be  as  wide  on  the  top  as  its  height  above  the 
ditch.  The  slope  of  the  sides  will  then  be  at  an  angle  of  45  degrees.  The 
rich  surface  soil  on  the  outer  side  leaves  it  in  good  shape  to  sod  or  seed 
with  blue  grass.  This  will  add  to  its  beauty,  and  prevent  furrowing  or 
washing  with  the  rains.  Dams  improve  with  age.  To  protect  them 
against  depredations  by  muskrats,  build  them  only  about  12  or  15  inches 


PRACTICAL  CARP  CULTURE. 

above  what  you  design  for  high-water  mark.     There  is  then  no  room  for 
the  dwelling  of  the  rodent  above  the  water  leveL 


PLAN    OF  A   CARP    POND. 

The  di«gram  shows  a  fmall  valley  surrounded  by  little  hills.  A  creek 
runs  across  this  valley,  and  the  farmer  concludes  to  make  a  carp  pond  on 
this  spot.  The  first  step  in  the  doing  of  this  is  lo  alter  or  correct  the  bed 
of  the  creek.  Tt  is  led  to  the  right  along  the  foot  of  the  hill  (c  r).  Next 
the  dam  (d)  is  located  and  built,  at  the  same  time  the  ditches  (c  d),  the 
collector  (c}  and  the  outer  collector  (o  c)  are  formed,  the  material  thus 
obtained  being  used  on  the  dam.  The  dam  (d)  runs  first  across  the  valley, 
then  forming  a  right  angle  it  runs  alongside  of  the  creek  to  protect  the 
pond  against  the  wild  water  of  the  latter.  L  is  a  lock  in  the  creek  which 
can  be  opened  or  closed  at  will.  P"rom  here  the  pond  is  supplied  with 
water.  A  second  lock  in  the  supply  channel,  which  leads  to  .7",  is  supplied 
with  some  arrangement,  a  wooden  box  with  slatted  sides,  a  box  of  gravel, 
or  a  wire  netting,  to  keep  out  wild  fish. 

The  form  of  the  bottom  of  a  pond  must  depend  on  its  size  and  shape 
and  the  purpose  for  which  it  is  to  be  used.  If  there  is  but  one  pondt 
which  is  to  be  the  home  of  the  carp  winter  and  summer,  the  pond  must 
be  arranged  to  that  end,  and  must  have  both  shallow  and  deep  water. 
The  carp  thrive  best  in  warm  water;  the  reason  is  twofold.  They  are 
adapted  to  the  higher  temperature,  and  the  higher  temperature  produces 
more  food  for  them  in  the  form  of  insects,  larvse  and  worms.  They  will 
stand  a  temperature  of  ninety  degrees  before  dying.  In  long-continued 
hot  spells,  In  shallow  water  subject  to  the  direct  rays  of  the  sun,  it  is  not 
uncommon  for  the  temperature  to  range  from  eighty-five  to  ninety  de- 
grees. The  carp  then  need  a  cooler,  deeper  place  to  retreat  to.  In  winter 
the  shallow  water  is  too  cold,  and  they  seek  the  deeper  water  for  warmth. 
Many  carp  eullurists  have  lost  their  fish  during  the  winter  season,  and 


24 


PRACTICAL  OABP  CULTURE. 


while,  no  doubt,  poisonous  gases  had  much  to  do  with  it,  it  is  just  as  cer- 
tain that  lack  of  deep  water  also  had  much  to  do  with.  it. 

To  obtain  both  shallow  and  deep  water,  on  about  one-half  of  the  area 
of  the  pond  around  its  edges  the  water  should  be  from  nothing  to  eighteen 
inches  deep;  on  about  one-fourth  of  the  area  of  the  pond,  from  eighteen 
inches  to  three  feet  deep,  and  on  the  other  one-fourth,  from  three  feet  to 
eight  or  ten,  or  even  twelve  feet  deep,  the  greatest  depth  being  at  the 
point  where  the  drain-pipe  and  collector  are  situated,  as  shown  in  the 
accompanying  illustration: 


LONGITUDINAL   SECTION  OF  A  POND. 

J  is  the  Inlet  or  point  where  the  water  enters  the  pond ;  E  is  the  spawn- 
ing ground  for  the  fish,  and  is  shallow  and  full  of  water  plants;  S  is  the 
surface  of  the  water;  L  is  pond  lillies  to  give  shade  to  the  fish  in  hot 
weather;  C  is  the  collector,  or  deepest  point  in  the  pond,  and  is  situated 
at  the  entrance  of  the  drain-pipe.  O  L  is  the  outlet  passing  under  the 
dam  from  the  lowest  point  in  the  pond  bottom;  J5Tis  a  collector  situated 
outside  of  the  dam  to  trap  any  fish  that  may  possibly  escape  through  OL; 
D  is  a  cross  section  of  the  dam.  The  bottom  should  be  of  a  uniform 
grade,  sloping  from  all  points  to  the  collector.  A  ditch,  four  feet  wide  and 
two  feet  deep,  leading  half  the  length  of  the  pond  and  down  to  the  col- 
lector, will,  when  drawing  off  the  pond,  greatly  facilitate  the  bringing  of 
the  fi.Hh  to  the  collector  Side  ditches,  tapping  any  low  spots  in  the  bot- 
tom, should  be  run  into  this  leader.  It  serves  a  further  purpose  in  getting 
below  the  gas-producing  stratum  of  the  bottom,  and  in  just  that  degree 
preserves  the  fish  in  winter  from  its  influence,  as  the  gas  rises  to  the  ice 
and  saturates  the  water  from  the  ice  downward. 

All  artificial  ponds  should  be  so  constructed  that  they  can  be  drained. 
It  is  quite  indispensable  to  successful  pond  culture.  In  Germany,  with 
the  experience  of  centuries  in  carp  culture,  their  system  of  draining 
ponds  is  so  complete  that  they  rotate  carp  culture  and  agriculture  as  we 
do  crops,  and  one  helps  the  other.  The  bottoms  of  ponds,  in  which  fish 
have  been  raised  a  few  years,  make  rich  fields,  and  cultivating  the  ground 
a  few  years  again  makes  it  produce  more  food  for  t.ie  fish.  Whatever  the 
advantage  arising  from  the  power  to  drain  ponds  for  this  purpose,  it  is 
certainly  much  more  essential  in  enabling  you  to  gather  your  harvest  of 
fish. 

Of  all  the  plans,  systems  and  methods  of  draining  ponds  in  vogue, 
both  in  Germany  and  America,  the  most  popular  aad  the  simplest  mofebo'd 


PRACTICAL  CARP  CULTURE. 


25 


is  that  of  the  "Monk,"  mentioned  first  in  this  country  by  Hugo  Mulertt, 
of  Cincinnati,  Ohio,  afterwards  by  Rudolph  Hessel,  Superintendent  of 
Government  ponds  at  Washington,  D.C.,  and  put  into  practical  operation 
by  Dr.  H.  H.  Gary,  Superintendent  of  the  Fisheries  of  Georgia,  through 
whose  kindness  I  have  the  pleasure  of  presenting  the  illustration. 


A    GERMAN   MONK. 

The  wood-cut  above  represents  this  simple  apparatus  that  has  become 
so  popular;  a  is  a  wooden  box  running  crosswise  through  the  dam,  six 
inches  below  the  lowest  point  in  the  collector,  so  that  it  will  insure  the 
complete  emptying  of  the  pond,  made  of  heart-pine  plank,  being  twelve 
inches  wide  and  two  thick,  securely  nailed  together.  The  upright  part, 
6,  is  of  the  same  material  and  size,  and  joins  it  at  right  angles,  and  of 
sufficient  length  to  extend  some  distance  above  the  water  line.  This  is 
made  secure  to  the  horizontal  portion,  and  it  will  be  of  great  advantage  to 
give  the  whole  a  dressing  of  coal  tar.  The  side  of  the  upright  next  to  the 
pond  is  left  open,  and  narrow  strips  are  nailed  to  the  uprights  on  the 
inside  to  constitute  grooves  for  the  gate  pieces,  c  c  c  c. ;  d  is  a  strainer  of 
wire,  secured  in  a  frame  of  the  same  size  as  the  gate  pieces,  c.  When  it  is 
desired  to  empty  the  pond,  remove  the  highest  gate  piece,  c,  and  substitute 
the  strainer,  d.  When  the  water  line  is  lowered  to  the  next  gate  piece, 
remove  it  and  substitute  the  strainer  for  it,  as  in  the  first  instance,  and  so 
on  until  the  water  is  drawn  down  nearly  to  the  collector,  then  the  mud 
can  be  removed  from  the  collector,  the  fish  dispersing  while  this  is  being 
done.  The  water  can  then  be  drawn  oft'  until  the  fish  are  drawn  into  the 
collector,  when  they  can  be  readily  removed  with  the  dip-net,  when  the 
last  gate  piece  can  be  taken  out  and  the  collector  completely  emptied. 
The  only  defect  is  in  making  the  gates  tight.  If  the  water  supply  is 
abundant,  this  is  of  no  consequence,  as  the  leakage  would  not  allow  the 
small  fish  to  pass  out,  and  still  might  constitute  a  part  of  the  overflow. 


26  PRACTICAL  CARP  CULTURE. 

but,  if  the  water  supply  is  limited,  this  might  lower  the  pond  at  a  time, 
when  you  could  not  afford  to  lose  any  water.  Fortunately,  this  defect 
can  be  easily  remedied.  Prepare  a  plank  of  the  size  of  the  opening  of  the 
box,  a,  (let  it  be  green  lumber,  so  that  it  will  not  swell,  to  prevent  its 
being  withdrawn),  pass  this  down  along  the  side  of  the  upright,  6,  so  it 
will  include  the  opening  in  a,  then  6  can  be  filled  with  sawdust  tor  a  foot 
or  two,  and  a  little  dirt,  if  necessary,  which  will  entirely  stop  the 
leakage. 

The  objections  to  this  method  are:  First,  the  wood  will  decay.  Sec- 
ond, for  very  large  ponds  the  drawing  would  require  too  much  time. 
Both  these  objections  together  with  all  possibility  of  leakage,  may  be 
overcome  by  building  the  flumes,  a  and  b  both  of  brick,  covering  the  top 
of  a  with  flagging  stones,  or  any  others  long  enough  to  reach  from  wall 
to  wall,  and  leaving  b  entirely  open  in  front,  b  should  then  be  built 
closer  in  to  the  dam  than  shown  in  the  cut ;  far  enough  in  so  that  the  open 
front  at  the  bottom  is  a  little  within  the  line  of  the  dam.  Against  the 
open  face  of  b  lay  two-inch  plank,  sawed  of  a  length  to  just  cover  the  out- 
side edges.  In  front  of  6,  and  two  feet  away,  sink  two  posts ;  fill  in  the 
space  between  the  posts  and  6,  with  good  clay  or  loam,  tamping  it  well  as 
it  is  put  in.  Make  a  sufficient  detour  in  your  dam  to  include  these  posts 
and  it  will  protect  the  sides  of  b  and  give  you  an  absolute  water-proof  draw- 
off  that  will  last  without  repairs  for  ages.  The  draw-off  can  be  built  any 
size  to  suit.  The  top  of  b  can  be  covered  with  a  lid,  or,  if  the  top  is  below 
the  level  of  the  dam,  it  can  be  covered  with  boards  and  a  little  earth 
thrown  on  them  will  conceal  it  entirely.  A  door  should  be  fitted  to  the 
outer  end  of  a  and  kept  locked  when  not  in  use.  In  drawing  off  the  pond 
take  the  earth  from  between  the  posts  and  6,  remove  one  plank  at  a  time, 
and  as  the  water  runs  down  remove  more  earth  an  other  plank,  and  so  on 
to  the  last.  A  frame  the  size  of  your  pieces  of  plank  made  of  two-by-two- 
inch  stuff  and  covered  with  a  wire  run  the  short  way  of  the  frame 
between  six-penny  nails  driven  so  closely  together  as  to  only  permit  the 
wire  to  pass  between  them.  The  heads  of  the  nails  on  either  side  should 
be  covered  with  sheet  iron  which  comes  even  with  the  surface  of  the 
inside  of  the  frame.  This  frame  slipped  into  the  place  of  each  piece  of 
plank  as  it  is  removed,  will  prevent  the  escape  of  the  fish  and  will  not 
clog  as  will  a  mesh  or  screen. 

An  improvement  on  this  method  where  lumber  is  used  in  its  construc- 
tion was  published  in  the  NATIONAL  JOURNAL  OF  CARP  CULTURE,  Oc- 
tober, 1886,  by  8.  F.  Ulery,  of  Garrison,  Iowa,  which  consists  of  clamps  as 
shown  in  the  illustration  (next  page)  herewith .  These  clamps  are  made  in 
four  pieces  out  of  %x%  inch  iron.  To  make  a  clamp  for  a  box  12  inches  across 
from  outside  to  outside,  cut  a  piece  of  iron  10  inches  long  as  described  by 
letter  A  in  cut,  flatten  one  end  and  punch  a  hole  to  receive  a  %  inch 
bolt  so  that  the  %  inch  edge  of  the  iron  can  be  bolted  against  the  box 
which  will  give  it  sufficient  strength;  B  is  made  the  same  as  A  except 
that  a  %  inch  hole  is  made  in  the  opposite  end  the  flat  way  of  the  iron ;  C 
is  made  27%  inches  long,  with  a  ^  inch  hole  in  each  end  the  flat  way  of 
the  iron.  Bend  the  iron  in  the  center,  and  bolt  the  two  ends  on  to  the  end 


PRACTICAL  CARP  CULTURE. 


27 


of  B  in  the  shape  of  a  hinge,  now  close  C  to  within  %  of  an  inch,  so  it 
will  pass  over  the  end  of  A.  I)  is  a  key  in  the  shape  of  a  wedge  to  tighten 
the  clamp.  Bolt  A  on  the  outside  of  the  box  so  that  it  will  project  1% 
inches  in  front  of  outlet,  drive  a  staple  over  it  in  the  center.  Bolt  B 
directly  opposite  to  A  on  the  outside  of  box  and  staple  same  as  A,  place 
the  clamp  C  over  the  end  of  A  and  drive  in  the  key.  Fasten  the  key  to 
the  box  with  a  chain.  This  clamp  will  not  rust  so  but  what  it  can  be 
easily  adjusted  above  or  in  the  water.  Use  three  clamps  on  a  ten  foot  box. 


THE   MONK   WITH   CLAMPS. 

It  is  necessary  only  to  use  slats  on  the  inside  of  the  box  as  the  clamps 
keep  the  sections  firmly  to  their  places  from  the  outside  and  the  sections 
can  be  put  in  or  taken  out  anywhere  up  or  down  the  box. 

A   BOTTOM   OVERFLOW   AND   DRAIN. 

In  ponds  where  the  water  is  cold  and  the  supply  constant,  and  a  con- 
sequent continual  overflow,  it  is  very  desirable  that  the  water  passing  out 
of  the  pond  should  be  the  coldest  water  it  contains.  This  is  always  found 
at  the  bottom  of  the. deepest  part  of  the  pond.  A  very  practical  and  pop- 
ular method  of  accomplishing  this  is  presented  in  the  accompanying  il- 
lustration. It  was  introduced  into  this  country  by  George  Eckardt,  for- 
merly Superintendent  of  the  Missouri  Fish  Commission.  We  take  the 
description  given  of  it  by  I.  G.  W.  Steedman,  A.  M.,  M.  D.,  ex-Chairman 
of  the  Commission  of  that  State,  in  his  work  on  "Carp  and  Carp  Culture 
in  Missouri." 

"The  illustration  represents  a  combined  overflow  and  draining  appara- 
tus, the  sketch  having  been  drawn  from  those  now  in  use  in  three  of  our 
Forest  Park  spawning  ponds. 

A  B  is  a  wooden  box  running  crosswise  to  (at  right  angles  with)  the 
dam,  the  box  G  H,  where  the  water  enters,  being  placed  in  the  lowest 


£8  PRACTICAL   CARP   CULTURE. 

point  in  the  kettle,  so  as  to  insure  thorough  emptying  of  the  pond.  The 
perforations  in  this  box  G  H  should  not  exceed  a  half  inch  in  diameter, 
and  sTioulci  be  numerous  in  proportion  to  the  volume  of  the  water  entering 
the  pond  and  passing  the  overflow;. if  necessary,  perforations  may  be 
made  in  the  side  as  well  as  in  the  front.  The  total  capacity  of  these  per- 
forations should  be  considerably  greater  than  the  capacity  of  the  hori- 
zontal box,  as  in  emptying  the  pond,  the  holes  necessarily  become  more 
or  less  choked  by  mud,  fish,  water-plants,  etc. 


BOTTOM   OVERFLOW   AND   DRAIN. 

In  the  upright  box  C  D  K  I,  is  framed  a  perpendicular  slide  or  gate, 
K.  F,  which  fits  tightly  on  the  bottom  of  the  horizontal  box  A  B,  the  end 
of  gate  being  held  in  position  by  strips  nailed  on  the  bottom;  similar 
ntrips,  N  N,  are  nailed  on  the  vertical  sides  of  upright  box;  between 
which  the  gate  is  lifted  up  or  forced  down  by  means  of  an  iron  hook  or 
i  ing  in  top  of  gate  at  the  point  where  the  curved  arrow  shows  water  pass- 
iugover.  The  course  of  the  water  when  overflowing  is  shown  by  the 
arrows. 

The  pond  is  emptied  by  simply  lifting  the  gate  E  F,  when  the  water 
passes  directly  through  the  horizontal  box  A  B. 

On  the  top  of  the  upright  box  at  I  K  is  shown  a  lid  which  may  be 
locked  down,  to  keep  idlers  and  thieves  from  raising  the  gate  and  empty- 
ing the  pond. 

The  water  level  in  the  pond  op,n  be  changed  at  will  by  simply  placing 


PRACTICAL  CARP  CULTURE.  29 

strips  of  board  on  top  the  gate,  at  the  curved  arrow,  as  desired. 

The  most  serious  defect  in  the  whole  apparatus  consists  in  making 
the  gate  E  F  water-tight.  If  the  water  supply  is  scant,  a  small  leak  may 
lower  your  pond  at  a  season  when  additional  water  can  not  be  obtained. 
A  liberal  supply  of  saw-dust  thrown  into  the  box  may  materially  assist  in 
closing  the  leaks.  It  is  best  to  make  this  combined  overflow  and  draining 
apparatus  of  two  inch  boards,  and  in  addition  to  what  is  shown  in  the 
drawing,  drive  upright  boards  deep  into  the  clay  beside  the  horizontal 
box  A  B,  and  nail  them  fast  to  the  box,  so  that  no  amount  of  heavy  strain 
in  lifting  and  lowering  the  gate  can  displace  the  apparatus  and  cause  a 
leak.  We  recommend  that  all  this  wood  work  be  thoroughly  painted 
with  coal  tar  before  it  is  placed  in  the  dam.  For  that  portion  above  the 
water  level  it  is  indispensable." 

It  will  be  found  much  more  satisfactory  to  extend  A  far  enough  into 
the  pond  to  build  a  box-frame  4x4  feet  wide  and  2  feet  high  over  the  end  O  H. 
The  sides,  ends  and  top  of  this  box  should  be  made  of  slats  one  inch  thick 
and  one  inch  wide  on  one  side  by  three-fourth  of  an  inch  on  the  other  side. 
These  should  be  nailed  on  the  frame  with  the  narrow  side  in  and  the 
wide  side  out,  and  one-fourth  of  an  inch  apart.  These  openings  will 
then  be  one-fourth  inch  on  the  outside  of  the  box  and  one-half  inch  on  the 
inside  of  the  box.  Any  debris  starting  through  the  crack  will  go  clear 
through  and  the  strainer  will  not  clog  up  as  will  augur  holes.  Being  a 
level  surface  it  is  easily  cleaned.  The  qlats  may  be  made  from  a  plained 
inch  board.  This  box  strainer  should  be  anchored  to  well-sunk  stakes  at 
its  corners.  This  plan  of  straining  is  the  result  of  many  years  experience 
in  pond  culture,  by  George  Finley,  an  eminent. pisciculturist,  of  Pitts- 
burg,  Pa.,  who  commends  it  most  highly,  as  do  all  others  who  have 
used  it. 


LEVEL... 


SLT1)IX(J    (.'KXTER   BOARD. 

(i.— Water  Level. 

II. — Kmhankmcnt  or  dam. 

D.  D.— A  tube  passing  under  the  dam. 

A — Strainer  box  over  inlet  K.  oi'  tube,  to  prevent  the  escape  offish. 

B.  C.— Perpendicular  tube  at  right  angles  to  D.  D.,  with  F.,  a  partition  dividing  it 
across  in  the  center.  The  water  entering  at  A.  follows  the  arrows  and  passes  through  D. 
1).  to  outside  of  dam. 

F.  is  a  sliding  center  board,  to  be  raised  or  lowered  at  will. 

A  modification  of    the  method  in  use  in  the  Forest  Park  pond*  and 


30  PRACTICAL  CARP  CULTURE. 

showing  a  strainer  box,  such  as  described  above,  was  suggested  to  us  by 
E.  C.  Griffiths,  of  Honey  Brook,  Pa.  We  had  it  engraved  for  the  benefit 
of  the  readers  of  "American  Carp  Culture,"  and  because  of  the  strainer 
box  and  sliding  center-board  reproduce  it  here.  In  suggesting  it  Mr. 
Griffith  said: 

"The  greatest  trouble  in  ponds  is  to  make  an  outlet  that  will  not  choke 
with  drift  and  at  the  same  time  prevent  the  fish  from  escaping.  Frost 
also  tries  the  best  constructed  appliances.  In  the  plan  of  drawing  I  send 
you,  all  these  obstacles  are  overcome.  Three  years  ago  I  designed  and 
introduced  it  into  my  pond  and  it  has  worked  in  the  most  satisfactory 
manner.  Other  parties  have  also  made  their  outlets  after  this  plan  and 
say  it  works  better  than  anything  of  the  kind  they  ever  tried. 

Drawing  the  water  from  the  bottom,  the  temperature  is  several 
degrees  cooler  than  the  surface  in  the  summer,  and  in  the  winter  it  main- 
tains a  temperature  of  spring  water,  therefore  seldom  forms  ice  inside  the 
pipes.  Another  advantage  I  claim  is  if  at  any  time  the  water  is  wanted 
to  be  partly  lowered,  it  can  be  done  without  disturbing  the  under  drain. 
The  water  level  can  also  be  changed  at  will,  simply  by  raising  the  sliding 
center  partition." 

In  placing  of  overflows  and  under  drains  in  dams  and  embankments, 
we  cannot  'insist  too  strenuously  upon  the  necessity  of  great  care  in  the 
work  to  prevent  leakage  and  to  insure  th§  complete  emptying  of  the 
pond.  They  must  of  course  be  put  in  place  as  the  dam  is  being  built,  and 
immediately  after  the  ditch  underlying  the  dam  is  filled.  This  will  be 
before  much  material  has  been  taken  from  the  pond  bottom.  If  the 
material  to  fill  the  ditch  is  taken  from  the  pond  bottom  it  should  be  taken 
from  the  point  where  your  collector  is  to  be  situated,  (if  the  material 
there  is  good  for  the  purpose).  This  will  lower  that  point  so  that  you  can 
better  judge  the  right  level  for  your  underdrain,  which  should  be  about 
four  inches  below  the  bottom  of  the  collector.  When  ready  to  lay  your 
tubing,  prepare  a  very  level,  thoroughly  tamped  bed  for  it.  When  in  its 
place  drive  stakes  with  a  flat  surface  next  the  tube,  two  feet  apart.  Nail 
these  to  both  the  bottom  and  top  piece  of  tube.  Good  stakes  should  also 
be  driven  at  the  collector  end  of  tlje  tube  and  nailed  in  the  same  way. 
Brace  the  upright  end  of  the  drain  pipe,  then  begin  filling  around  the  tube, 
using  pulverised  earth,  well  wet,  tamped  from  end  to  end  on  each  side, 
carefully  working  every  particle  of  earth  that  you  can  in  under  the  tube ; 
the  stakes  will  prevent  its  lifting,  and  you  can  pack  it  very  thoroughly. 
Continue  the  filling  and  tamping  on  up  the  sides  and  over  the  top  in  the 
same  way.  The  soil,  if  wet  to  the  point  of  puddling,  will  pack  so  much 
the  better. 

In  large  ponds  it  may  be  found  necessary  to  place  more  than  one  of 
these  outlets  to  facilitate  the  emptying  of  the  pond.  But  this  is  a  matter 
which  every  culturist  will  be  able  to  pass  the  best  judgment  on  himself 
and  we  leave  it  with  him. 

OVERFLOWS. 

In  ponds  subject  to  freshets  or  sudden  inundations  of  water,  a  provision 
should  be  made,  if  possible,  to  have  an  overflow  at  the  upper  end  of  th« 


PRACTICAL  CARP  CULTURE. 


31 


pond,  or  as  far  away  from  the  dam  and  embankment  as  possible.  This 
should  consist  of  a  space  wide  in  proportion  to  the  size  of  the  pond, 
amount  of  water  passing  and  frequency  of  inundation.  This  space  should 
be  covered  with  grass  or  a  stratum  of  coarse  gravel,  so  that  it  will  not 
wash  or  cut  out.  The  overflowing  water  should  be  conducted  in  a  chan- 
nel at  a  safe  distance  from  the  embankments  of  the  pond  to  below  the  dam, 
where  it  will  take  care  of  itself.  Where  the  water  passes  out  of  the  pond, 
a  strainer  made  of  slats,  as  described  for  the  drain  box,  should  extend  clear 
across  the  space ;  the  slats  Jbeing  placed  a  half  an  inch  apart. 

Where  for  any  reason  the  overflow  of  the  pond  cannot  be  regulated 
from  the  upper  end,  or  where  such  an  arrangement  is  designed  only  for 
special  protection  against  freshets,  and  the  desire  is  to  keep  the  water  or- 
dinarily below  that*  level,  the  following  device  introduced  by  Mr.  George 
Eckardt  into  the  Forest  Park  ponds,  of  Missouri,  will  be  found  service- 
able. I.  G.  W.  Steedman,  explaining  it  in  his  work  before  quoted,  says: 

"Nopond  is  safe  against  storms  and  floods,  unless  it  has  a  properly 
constructed  overflow  of  sufficient  capacity  to  carry  off  all  surplus  water, 
and  at  the  same  time  not  permit  the  escape  of  the  fish.  Overflows  which 
receive  the  water  from  the  surface  of  the  pond  will  clog  and  choke  from 
the  drift  leaves  and  other  trash  always  brought  down  by  heavy  rains. 


The  illustration  shows  a  wooden  overflow,  so  constructed  as  to  prevent 
surface  drift  from  choking  the  perforations  in  the  box  C  D.  The  arrows 
show  the  water  entering  the  box  C  D  below  the  water  level  and  near  the 
bottom  of  the  pond,  passing  over  the  dam  at  B  E ;  at  the  end  of  this  chute 
a  sheeting  of  boards  or  stone  should  be  constructed  to  prevent  a  wash  and 
undermining  of  the  dam  by  the  overflow. 

Of  course  the  sizo  of  the  box  C  D,  A  B,  I  K,  and  the  number  of  per- 
forations at  C  D  must  properly  be  proportioned  to  the  volume  of  water  to 
be  expected  in  extreme  floods,  always  allowing  for  more  or  less  choking 
at  C  D.  This  overflow  .should  be  built  of  two-inch  stuff',  and  thoroughly 
coated  with  coal  tar  before  being  put  down.  If  properly  constructed  it  is 
automatic  and  needs  no  watching.  We  have  one  in  Forest  Park  that 
works  admirably.  This  sketch  is  made  from  it. 

Before  the  introduction  of  this  simple  overflow,  it  was  necessary  to 
have  men  stationed  with  brooms  day  and  night  during  heavy. rains  to 
keep  the  wire  gratings  swept  clean  of  drift,  to  prevent  disastrous  over- 
flows. Now,  we  have  no  trouble  in  ponds  thus  equipped. 

It  is  all  important  that  the  size  and  capacity  of  the  overflow  be  prop- 
erly proportioned  to  the  maximum  floods  which  may  occur." 

We  advise  that  C  D  be  made  of  slats,  as  described  for  the  mouth  of  th« 
drain  flume. 


CHAPTER  V. 

CLAS1ES  OF  CARP  PONDS  AND  THEIR  PURPOSES. 

There  are  but  few  persons  that  engage  in  ctrp  culture  as  a  mere  mat- 
ter of  pastime  or  pleasure,  and  to  whom  the  ulterior  motive  of  profit  does 
not  present  itself.  The  culture,  happily,  combines  in  an  eminent  degree 
these  much  desired  ends,  pleasure  and  profit.  Even  while  we  write,  the 
incentive  to  systematic  and  extensive  culture  grows  stronger  day  by  day. 
Following  the  lead  of  Germany,  arrangements  are  now  being  made  to 
place  live  carp  for  table  use  on  the  market  in  this  country.  A  stock  com- 
pany ha§  been  chartered  in  Illinois  to  so  supply  the  Chicago  market. 
This  is  a  matter  of  no  surprise  to  us,  because  we  expected  just  such 
things.  The  young  industry  is  moving  rapidly  forward,  and  in  a  few 
more  years  will  occupy  its  legitimate  place  as  one  of  the  leading  and 
most  profitable  branches  of  agriculture.  Chicago  has  but  taken  the  lead. 
Whenever  the  stock  on  hand  warrants  it,  other  cities  will  follow  with 
live  fish  markets.  The  people  once  educated  to  the  difference  between  a 
fish  that  dies  of  suffocation,  as  do  all  the  dead  fish  offered  for  sale  in 
our  markets,  and  the  flesh  of  which  is  therefore  not  fi4  to  eat,  and  a  fish 
taken  alive  from  the  water  and  killed  immediately  and  dressed  for  the 
table;  then  carp,  as  the  one  fish,  .that  can  be  supplied  alive  in  sufficient 
quantities  for  the  market,  will  command  a  price  that  will  make  their 
culture  exceedingly  profitable.  The  political  complexion  of  our  national 
legislature  will  not  affect  this  industry.  The  difficulty  of  importing  live 
fish  places  it  beyond  the  need  of  a  tariff  protection. 

The  line  between  extensive  and  systematic  carp  culture  and  simple 
carp  culture  will  lie  between  those  who  push  it  as  a  business  enterprise 
and  those  who  engage  in  it  as  a  home  pleasure  that  will  add  a  luxury  to 
their  table.  For  the  former  a  number  of  ponds  are  necessary,  a  single 
pond  will  answer  for  the  latter.  Tjje  conditions  not  being  the  same  the 
ponds  must  be  differently  constructed.  In  describing  those  suited  to  each 
purpose  we  will  begin  with  a  series  of  ponds  intended  for  the  systematic 
pursuit  of  carp  culture. 

SYSTEMATIC  CARP  PONDS. 

In  France,  England  and  Germany  they  have  different  classifications 
and  names  for  these  ponds.  In  this  country  they  should  be  styled  ac- 
cording to  the  ends  they  serve. 

1.  The  hatching  pond. 

2.  The  stock  pond. 

3.  The  market  pond. 

The  size  of  these  ponds  should  be  in  keeping  one  with  the  other;  the 


PRACTICAL    CARP  CULTURE.  33 

hatching  pond   much  the  smallest,  the  stock  pond  next  in  size  and  the 
market  pond  largest  of  all. 

THE  HATCHING  POND.  Its  average  depth  should  not  exceed  eighteen 
inches,  less  will  do.  Considerable  of  its  area,  about  the  margin,  the  water 
should  be  from  nothing  to  six  inches  deep,  and  over  this  area  the  flat, 
long,  soft  leaved  manna  grass,  known  to  botanists  as  Glyceria  fluitans, 
which  grows  readily  and  rapidly  and  is  common  in  the  United  States, 
should  be  planted.  German  authors  credit  the  carp  with  a  weakness  for 
depositing  their  eggs  on  this  particular  plant.  If  these  authors  have  as- 
signed any  reason  for  the  preference  of  this  plant  by  the  carp,  we  have 
not  yet  seen  it.  There  is  a  cause  for  everything,  and  we  believe  the  cause 
for  this  is  that  these  plants  grow  close  together,  almost  covering  the  bot- 
tom of  the  pond  their  strap  like  leaves  coming  straight  up  to  the  top  of  the 
water  and  then  floating.  At  the  time  of  spawning  the  female  pursued  by 
the  male  rushes  through  the  thick  mass  of  leaves,  the  resistance  to  her 
passage  compresses  her  body  and  requires  greater  exertion  on  her  part  to 
force  the  passage,  both  of  which  give  her  aid  in  ejecting  the  eggs,  which 
are  caught  by  the  leaves  as  she  passes,  and  as  the  male  follows  the  same 
causes  contribute  to  the  more  liberal  ejectment  of  the  milt.  A  greater 
per  cent,  of  eggs  are  thus  kept  from  sinking,  and  are  fertilized  by  the 
male  than  would  be  possible  with  almost  any  other  water  plant. 

The  bottom  of  the  hatching  pond  must  be  constructed  on  the  same 
general  plan  laid  down  in  chapter  IV. ;  that  is,  it  must  have  collector, 
collector  ditches,  etc.,  the  main  ditch  being  wide,  long  and  deep  enough  , 
to  afford  a  resting  place  for  the  fish  in  either  exceeding  hot  or  cold 
weather,  as  the  young  fry  pass  their  first  summer  and  winter  in  this  pond. 
The  collectors  in  all  ponds  should  be  cleaned  every  year  In  hatching 
ponds,  owing  to  the  small  size  of  the  fish  when  they  are  taken  from 
the  pond,  that  the  collector  should  be  clean  is  indispensable.  A  bed  of 
gravel  in  the  collector,  or  a  rough  board  floor  nailed  to  mudsills  thor- 
oughly anchored  to  stakes  driven  deep  and  firm,  will  greatly  facilitate  the 
cleaning,  as  well  as  the  taking  out  of  the  fish.  The  pond  must  be  pro- 
vided with  outlet  drains  and  overflows,  and  must  be  protected  with  side 
ditches  from  freshets  or  inundations.  A  fundamental  requirement  of 
successful  carp  culture  is  an  unchanging  water  level.  If  this  is  spe- 
cifically true  anywhere  in  the  domain  of  carp  culture  it  is  in  the  hatch- 
ing pond,  and  particularly  during  the  period  of  spawning  and  hatching. 
A  change  in  the  water  level  after  the  eggs  are  deposited  and  before  they 
are  hatched  is  sure  to  do  damage.  If  the  water  level  is  raised  it  either 
washes  the  eggs  from  their  hold  on  the  vegetation  of  the  pond,  in  which 
case  they  sink  and  are  lost,  or  it  covers  them  with  such  a  depth  of  water 
as  to  change  the  temperature  and  chill  them,  which  will  delay  if  it  does 
not  prevent  their  hatching.  To  lower  the  water  level  is  still  more  disas- 
trous, as  it  leaves  the  best  lodged  eggs,  those  nearest  the  surface  of  the 
water,  high  and  dry  and  subject  to  the  direct  action  of  the  sun's  rays, 
which  speedily  dries  out  and  spoils  them.  For  weeks  after  hatching  a 
change  of  the  water  level  would  be  disastrous  to  the  young  fish,  in  its 
effect  on  their  feeding  ground  and  on  the  vegetation  of  the  pond.  The 


34  PRACTICAL  CARP  CULTURE. 

hatching  pond  is  a  paradise  quite  for  the  enemies  of  the  carp,  (see  chapter 
on  enemies  of*  carp)  and  must  be  jealously  guarded  against  them.  In 
this  connection  we  desire  to  say  that  it  is  not  wise  to  have  hatching  ponds 
cover  much  more  than  an  acre  of  territory  each.  If  greater  space  is  nec- 
essary it  will  be  wiser  and  better  to  build  other  hatching  ponds.  First, 
because  the  larger  the  body  of  water  the  more  attractions  it  presents  for 
the  large  army  of  water  fowls  that  prey  on  the  young  carp.  Again,  the 
larger  the  body  of  water  the  greater  the  opportunity  for  damage  by  waves 
formed  on  the  pond  by  wind,  that  frequently  wash  the  eggs  from  their 
lodgment,  carry  them  on  to  the  shore  and  on  retiring  leave  them  there 
to  dry  up.  The  newly  hatched  fry  will  even  be  carried  out  in  this  way  by 
the  waves. 

In  the  selection  of  spawners  great  care  must  be  exercised  to  secure 
the  healthiest  and  largest  of  their  age,  and  truest  to  their  variety.  Fish 
affected  by  fungus  growth,  polyp  or  any  other  disease  should  never  be 
used  for  spawners,  and  the  best  thing  to  do  with  them  is  to  kill  them,  or 
put  them  in  a  small  pond  by  themselves. 

The  general  rule  in  Europe  for  the  stocking  of  hatching  ponds  is  two 
males  to  three  females  to  each  acre  contained  in  the  pond.  This  number 
is,  however,  frequently  doubled.  Some  of  the  culturists  of  Germany  and 
a  great  many  of  the  culturists  in  America  make  quite  a  change  in  the 
proportion  of  the  sexes,  and  put  two  males  to  each  female  and  with  very 
satisfactory  results.  We  are  not  well  enough  established  in  carp  culture 
in  America  to  talk  experimentally  of  it  by  the  acre,  and  'acre  hatching 
ponds  in  America  are  yet  scarce,  as  are  also  the  men  who  make  a  special 
business  of  carp  raising.  Either  rule  will  operate  satisfactorily.  With 
one  more  female  than  male  it  is  certain  that  some  eggs  will  either  not  be 
deposited  or  go  unfertilized.  With  two  males  to  one  female  there  is 
greater  activity  and  better  possibilities  of  fertilizing  the  eggs.  The  fe- 
males are  very  prolific,  and  will  deposit  about  100,000  eggs  for  every  pound 
of  weight.  Those  that  are  not  fertilized,  and  many  of  those  that  are 
fertilized  never  come  to  life,  and  many  of  those  that  come  to  life  die  very 
young  or  are  destroyed  by  enemies.  So  that  at  the  drawing  of  the  pond 
in  the  fall  or  spring  the  average  to  each  spawner  will  not  exceed  from  1000 
to  1500.  It  requires  water  rich  in  natural  fish  food  to  supply  the  wants 
of  5000  young  fry  the  first  summer  to  each  acre.  If,  however,  artificial 
feeding  is  resorted  too  when  the  spawners  first  begin  their  work  of  repro- 
duction and  continued  carefully  until  they  are  through  spawning  and  the 
spawners  are  then  removed,  and  the  young  fish  are  carefully  and  regu- 
larly fed,  and  the  water  supply  is  good,  then  much  better  results  will  be 
attained,  and  the  number  of  spawners  to  each  acre  even  may  be  greatly 
increased  and  the  number  of  young  correspondingly  increased.  The  one 
difficulty  to  be  guarded  against  is  too  much  stock  for  the  water  and  food; 
when  the  former  occurs  the  fish  come  to  the  surface  with  open  mouths  in 
search  of  oxygen ;  when  they  have  not  food  enough  they  stop  growing 
and  the  bones  begin  to  harden,  and  if  left  long  in  this  way  they  never 
overcome  it  and  are  always  very  small  for  their  age.  With  plenty  of 
food  and  water  the  young  fry  of  April  and  May  hatch  should  measure  in 
November  from  five  to  nine  inches  long.  If  the  water  is  overstocked 


PRACTICAL   CARP  CULTURE.  35 

and  they  are  not  fed  they  will  only  measure  from  two  to  three  inches. 
In  smaller  hatching  ponds  all  the  relations  above  hold  good.  The  bottom 
must  be  constructed  on  the  same  plan,  plenty  of  shallow  water  about  the 
margins  with  deeper  water  to  retreat  too.  The  question  of  how  many 
good,  healthful,  growing  fish  can  be  raised  in  a  limited  area  of  water  if 
the  margins  are  in  good  shape  for  spawning  grounds  and  the  temperature 
is  all  right,  resolves  itself  into  a  question  of  oxygen  and  food. 

The  removal  of  the  fry  from  the  hatching  pond,  either  for  shipping 
purposes  or  for  transfer  to  the  stock  pond,  must  be  done  with  the  utmost 
care.  The  water  must  be  drawn  off  through  the  slatted  or  grated  outlet 
very  slowly,  that  no  fish  may  remain. in  the  mud,  for  if  the  pond  is  to  be 
again  used  for  spawning  purposes  the  larger  fish  remaining  will  consume 
the  food  intended  for  the  new  hatch.  The  slightest  injury  to  the  young 
fish  in  the  breaking  of  the  skin  or  knocking  off  of  scales  may  result  in 
disease  and  death. 

In  our  Northern,  Northeastern  and  Northwestern  States  the  hatching 
ponds  should  be  shallower,  with  the  greatest  depth  of  water  not  to  exceed 
two  feet  and  be  used  for  the  purpose  only  of  hatching  and  rearing  the 
young  the  first  summer.  The  pond  should  be  drawn  off  in  the  fall  and 
the  fry  transfered  to  the  stock  pond.  The  reason  for  this  is  that  with 
water  enough  to  successfully  winter  the  fry  in  the  hatching  ponds  in  these 
latitudes  it  would  be  difficult  to  get  the  water  warm  enough  for  the  carp 
to  spawn.  It  would  at  least  delay  the  time  of  spawning  until  late  in  June 
or  July,  and  the  young  would  have  but  a  short  season  for  growth.  The 
earlier  the  spawning  is  done  the  better  the  opportunity  for  the  fry  to  get  a 
good  growth  the  first  summer,  which  is  a  very  important  factor  in  their 
development  the  second  summer.  With  the  exception  of. these  colder 
sections  of  our  country,  the  general  rule  will  obtain  for  hatching  ponds; 
that  is  a  large  proportion  of  the  area  of  the  pond  the  water  is  to  be  shal- 
low, from  one  foot  deep  to  nothing,  and  plenty  of  vegetation  in  this  part 
of  the  pond,  which  should  equal  about  three-fifths  of  the  whole  area,  one- 
half  of  the  remainder  should  be  from  one  to  two  feet  deep  and  the  other 
one-fifth  from  two  to  four  feet  deep,  and  it  will  be  safest  and  best  to  win- 
ter the  young  fish  in  these  ponds. 

THE  STOCK  POND. — Its  construction  is  the  same  in  every  particular  as 
that  of  the  hatching  pond,  only  that  it  is  deeper  and  larger.  The  average 
depth  of  the  hatching  pond  Is  about  fifteen  inches.  The  average  depth  of 
the  stock  pond  shonld  be  from  twenty  to  twenty-four  inches.  The  shal- 
low and  deep  water  may  be  divided  in  the  same  proportions  as  in  the 
hatching  ponds,  three-fifths  of  the  whole  area  being  from  four  to  eighteen 
inches  deep,  one-fifth  from  eighteen  to  thirty-six  inches  and  the  remain- 
ing one-fifth  from  thirty-six  to  sixty  inches,  which  will  give  an  average 
depth  of  about  twenty-three  inches. 

The  stocking  of  these  ponds  generally  takes  place  in  the  spring  as 
soon  as  the  ice  is  gone  and  the  fish  begin  their  search  for  food.  Owing  to 
the  great  climatic  differences  in  portions  of  the  United  States  it  is  dif- 
ficult to  set  a  definite  time  for  this  operation.  Between  Texas  and  Wis- 
consin or  Minnesota  there  could  readily  be  a  difference  of  six  weeks  or 


36  PRACTICAL  CARP  CULTURE. 

more.  But  usually  it  is  done  in  the  latter  part  of  March  and  first  part  of 
April. 

The  number  of  fish  to  be  planted  to  the  acre  in  these  ponds,  if  not 
artificially  fed,  will  depend  largely  upon  the  size  of  the  fish.  The  plant 
can  better  be  determined  by  weight  than  by  numbers.  The  rule  that  has 
obtained  in  Europe  is  to  plant  from  800  to  1000  -fish  that  would  weigh  less 
than  one-half  pound  each,  to  the  acre.  It  must  be  remembered,  however^ 
that  in  Europe  the  fry  the  first  summer  could  have  only  about  four 
months  growth,  while  in  many  of  our  Southern  States  the  carp  gets  seven 
or  eight  months  growth  the  first  season,  and  in  some  of  those  States  even 
more.  In  Texas,  for  instance,  they  grow  nearly  if  not  quite  the  entire 
year  through.  Wlvle  these  favored  sections  produce  larger  fish,  nature 
maintains  the  balance  by  supplying  a  greater  abundance  of  food.  Owing 
to  these  climatic  differences  of  our  country,  and  the  contrast  in  growth  of 
carp  in  these  extremes  as  evidenced  in  the  reports  of  our  correspondents 
for  the  past  four  years,  we  conclude  it  much  safer  to  establish  a  rule  of 
weight  to  the  acre  in  planting  both  stock  and  market  ponds.  The  rule 
then  would  be  to  plant  your  stock  ponds  with  about  600  pounds  of  carp 
to  the  acre.  The  fish  rem'ain  in  the  pond  until  the  following  spring  unless 
large  enough  to  market  in  the  fall. 

THE  MARKET  POND  is  the  main  or  largest  pond  of  the  culturist,  and  is 
constructed  as  described  in  chapter  IV,  and  will  require  about  700  pounds 
of  carp  to  the  acre  to  stock  it.  The  size  these  fish  will  attain  by  fall  will 
depend  on  their  size  when  planted.  They  usually  increase  about  one 
hundred  and  fifty  per  centum  the  third  season. 

In  a  large  portion  of  the  United  States  it  will  not  be  good  economy  to 
keep  carp  the  third  year,  and  it  will  be  found  profitable  to  use  the  market 
pond  in  connection  with  the  stock  pond  for  second  summer  carp.  In  a 
large  section  of  our  country  the  carp  have  conditions  exactly  suited  to 
rapid  growth,  and  grow  from  seven  to  ten  and  even  eleven  months  in  the 
year,  and  attain  a  size  at  eighteen  months  old  much  greater  than  that  at- 
tained in  Europe  at  thirty  months  of  age.  It  is  the  size  and  not  the  age 
of  the  carp  that  makes  it  marketable.  When  carp  weigh  three  pounds 
and  upwards  each  they  are  fit  for  market.  Much  time  and  thought  and 
labor  has  been  and  is  now  given  to  reach  market  one  year  earlier  with 
warm  blooded  stock,  the  sole  purpose  being  to  realize  their  money  value 
earlier;  the  same  philosophy  is  applicable  to  carp.  When  they  are  ready 
for  market  do  not  keep  them  another  year,  but  realize  on  them.  In  at- 
taining this  the  second  year  the  market  pond  will  accomplish  a  good 
purpose;  in  transferring  the  one  summer  carp  from  the  hatching  pond 
select  the  largest  ones  and  place  them  in  the  market  pond,  and  the 
smaller  ones  in  the  stock  pond.  If  you  have  the  full  quota  per  acre  for 
the  market  pond  a  little  food  supplied  regularly  will  greatly  add  to  the 
prospects  of  a  marketable  crop  in  the  fall. 

In  this  system  of  ponds  the  hatching  pond  is  the  only  one  in  which  it 
in  designed  to  raise  any  young  carp,  the  others  are  feeding,  growing  and 
fattening  ponds.  But  in  this  country  carp  frequently  spawn  the  second 
summer,  arid  if  the  quota  of  the  pond  is  already  full,  and  the  spawn  is  allowed 


PRACTICAL  CARP  CULTURE.  37 

to  live,  with  the  great  number  of  spawners  in  the  pond,  they  will  be  very 
numerous  and  will  consume  largely  the  food  intended  for  the  larger  fish, 
greatly  retarding  their  growth.  To  overcome  this  it  will  be  found  advan- 
tageous to  adopt  the  European  rule  of  introducing  male  pike  into  the 
pond ;  a  bout  6  pike  for  every  100  carp.  The  pike  should  be  much  smaller 
than  the  carp  as  it  grows  very  much  faster  than  the  carp;  about  300  per 
cent,  a  year.  The  pike  will  serve  a  threefold  purpose :  1.  The  carp  fear 
the  pike  and  will  keep  a  safe  distance  from  them;  this  will  cause  the  carp 
to  move  about  the  pond  and  prevent  them  feeding  at  one  place.  2.  It  will 
in  a  measure  prevent  the  carp  from  spawning,  and  when  spawning  does 
occur  the  pike  will  devour  the  young  fry;  besides  the  pike  become  gener- 
all  scavingers  of  the  pond  and  will  destroy  other  fish  and  their*  spawn 
that  by  some  means,  and  despite  the  care  of  the  culturist,  are  constantly 
getting  into  ponds.  They  will  also  devour  watersnakes,  tritons,  etc. 
For  all  these  reasons  they  are  very  worthy  a  place  in  the  ponds,  and  are  a 
necessity  in  market  ponds  that  are  fully  stocked.  «In  ponds  not  adapted 
to  pike,  bass  or  other  game  fish  of  small  size  may  be  introduced  in  their 
stead.  In  this  system  of  ponds,  where  artificial  feeding  is  not  resorted 
too,  the  stock  pond  should  be  four  times  as  large  as  the  hatching  pond, 
and  the  market  pond  twice  as  large  as  the  stock  pond. 

SALE  POND.  ^ 

Those  three  ponds  will  be  found  all  that  is  iieccessary  in  a  system 
where  artificial  feeding  is  not  resorted  too.  Where  such  feeding  is  prac- 
ticed, two  other  ponds  may  be  found  of  advantage,  as  the  purpose  of 
feeding  is  to  keep  great  numbers  of  carp  where  the  natural  food  would 
supply  but  comparatively  a  few.  These  great  numbers,  on  a  small  area? 
keep  the  bottom  constantly  plowed  up  with  their  snouts,  in  search  of 
food,  so  that  the  entire  body  of  water  in  the  pond  is  continually  clouded 
with  muddy  discolorations,  and  this  bottom  character  of  the  water  will 
neccessarily  affect  unpleasantly  the  flesh  of  the  fish ;  this  is  of  conse- 
quence only  in  the  market  pond.  To  overcome  this  a  small  pond,  with  bot- 
tom and  sides  paved  with  brick  or  stone,  the  waste  stones  carted  from  the 
fields  of  the  farm  will  do,  making  the  slope  of  the  sides  and  the  surface  of 
the  sides  and  bottom  as  uniform  and  smooth  as  practical,  that  a  seine  will 
operate  to  the  very  best  advantage.  This  pond  should  be  oblong  in  shape, 
and  the  width  so  that  in  dragging  the  seine,  parties  can  walk  on  either 
side  of  the  pond,  and  the  seine  should  reach  from  bank  to  bank.  Its  size 
must  be  governed  by  the  number  of  fish  to  be  kept  in  it  and  the  flow  of 
fresh  water  that  reaches  it.  Water  from  the  other  ponds  should  not 
be  used  in  this  pond,  though  the  water  passing  from  this  pond  may  be 
ust'd  in  the  others.  Its  depth  may  be  from  6  to  10  feet.  The  depth  will 
riot  interfere  with  successful  seining,  as  the  pond  is  small,  only  large  fish 
in  it,  and  the  character  of  sides  and  bottom  permits  the  water  to  be 
lowered  very  rapidly  to  facilitate  seining.  While  in  this  pond  the  fish 
should  be  regularly  fed.  A  few  weeks  here  will  put  them  in  excellent 
1  rhi i  for  the  table. 

WINTER  POND. 

Where  the  hatching  pond  is  small,  used  for  the  purpose  of  hatching 


38  PRACTICAL  CARP  CULTURE. 

only,  and  too  shallow  to  successfully  winter  the  young  fry,  that,  owing 
to  care  and  artificial  feeding  are  in  great  numbers,  the  stock  pond  not 
being  ready  for  them  until  spring,  a  place  to  winter  them  in  is  neces- 
sary. The  winter  pond  is  used  for  this  sole  purpose.  It  should  be  clear 
of  mud,  and  from  8  to  10  feet  deep,  and  plentifully  supplied  with  running 
water,  if  possible.  The  hatching  pond  is  drawn  and  the  young  placed  in 
the  winter  pond  in  November,  and  as  they  do  not  eat  during  the  winter, 
no  feeding  is  necessary.  Such  a  pond  plentifully  supplied  with  water 
may  be  stocked  at  the  proportion  of  about  50,000  fry  to  the  acre. 

THE    MARKET    POND. 

The  market  pond  should  be  drawn  in  the  fall  and  the  carp  converted 
into  money.  They  will  loose  from  2  to  5  per  centum  of  weight  during  the 
winter.  In  many  places  in  the  United  States  they  have  been  held  over 
until  the  lenten  season  and  then  sold  at  advance  prices,  which  more  than 
made  up  for  the  loss  in  weight.  Where  the  carp  cannot  all  be  disposed  of 
at  once,  the  sale  pond  will  be  found  an  invaluable  annex. 

THE   STOCK    POND. 

The  stock  pond  should  be  drawn  in  the  spring,  the  spawners  selected 
for  the  spawning  pond  and  the  remainder  placed  in  the  market  pond. 

THE   HATCHING   POND. 

The  hatching  pond,  or  if  the  young  were  transfered  to  a  winter  pond 
in  the  fall,  then  the  winter  pond  is  drawn  as  soon  after  the  stock  pond 
has  been  emptied  and  filled  again  as  possible.  The  hatching  pond  is  then 
again  filled  and  the  spawners  placed  in  it. 

MIXED   CARP  CULTURE. 

A  method  of  systematic  carp  culture  in  a  series  of  proportioned 
ponds  as  detailed  in  the  preceeding  pages  would  be  entirely  to  extensive 
and  costly  a  luxury  for  beginners  as  most  farmers  must  be,  and  who 
utilize  some  waste  spot  to  raise  carp  for  a  home  luxury,  any  profit 
arising  from  the  sale  of  fish,  for  any  purpose,  being  only  incidental.  In 
these  instances  a  single  pond  must  answer  all  the  purposes,  and  must 
therefore  have  the  requirements  of  all  of  the  other  ponds.  If  a  natural 
pond  is  used  for  this  purpose  it  should  be  drained  first,  and  the  inhabi- 
tants of  it  destroyed.  The  bottom  should  then  be  arranged  as  described 
in  Chapter  IV.  Ditches,  collectors,  drains,  etc.,  that  the  water  of  the 
pond  may  at  all  times  be  under  control,  and  its  level  maintained.  In 
such  ponds  the  water  is  frequently  too  deep  for  successful  spawning  and 
hatching.  It  will  then  be  necessary  to  construct  a  hatching  place.  To 
do  this,  select  some  flat  spot  at,  or  near  the  edge  of  the  pond  of  such 
dimensions  as  the  opportunity  affords,  say  30  feet  wide  by  80  feet  long. 
Excavate  it  so  that  when  filled  from  the  pond  the  water  will  run  from 
nothing  at  the  margin  te  18  inches  deep  in  the  center.  Make  a  cut  then 
in  the  bank  from  6  to  10  feet  wide,  and  deep  enough  so  that  in  the  draw- 
ing off  of  the  pond  the  hatching  annex  will  be  completely  emptied.  This 
annex  should  be  thickly  planted  with  water  vegetation ;  manna  grass, 


PBACTICAL    CARP  CULTUBB. 


39 


before  mentioned,  water  plantain,  water  cress,  etc.,  taking  the  best  water 
plants  of  the  section  in  which  the  pond  is  located.  The  plants  best 
adapted  for  spawning  purposes  being  those  of  upright  close  growth 
beneath  the  surface,  and  whose  leaves  float  on  the  surface  of  the  water. 
The  spawning  carp  will  find  this  hatching  bed  and  when  they  have 
deposited  their  eggs  close  the  neck  with  a  seine  or  slatted  grating,  shutting 
the  large  fish  out  from  the  bed  for  a  few  weeks,  allowing  the  eggs  a  chance 
to  hatch  unmolested  and  the  young  an  opportunity  to  develop  somewhat 
and  learn  to  bunt  their  own  food. 


The  diagram  designed  by  Rudolph  Hessel  represents  such  an  annex  or 
hatching  bed,  A  is  the  pond,  B  the  annex  or  hatching  pond,  leaving 
nothing  wanted  to  complete  a  system  of  ponds  but  the  stock  pond. 

In  artificially  constructed  ponds  for  mixed  carp  culture,  though  to  be 
commended,  such  an  annex  is  not  a  necessity.  Shallow  water  about 
the  margins  with  the  proper  vegetable  growth  will  afford  spawning 
beds  for  the  carp.  If,  however,  there  is  not  plenty  of  food  for  the  larger 
carp  many  of  the  eggs  and  young  fry  will  be  devoured  by  them.  Usually, 
however,  enough  will  escape,  owing  to  -the  number  of  spawners  and  the 
great  number  of  eggs  and  young  to  satisfy  the  culturist. 

,  By  mixed  carp  culture  is  meant  the  raising  of  carp  of  all  ages  and 
sizes  in  the  same  pond;  not  the  raising  of  all  varieties  in  the  same  pond. 
We  cannot  impress  too  deeply  on  the  minds  of  carp  culturists  the  neces- 
sity of  keeping  the  varieties  separated.  In  the  start  out  do  not  plant  a 
mixed  variety  of  carp  in  the  same  pond,  and  if  in  their  progeny  they  run 
to  other  varieties  than  themselves,  weed  out  such  strangers,  if  large  en- 
ough eat  them,  if  not  turn  them  loose  in  some  stream.  If  you  have  or 
want  more  than  one  of  the  varieties,  prepare  separate  ponds  for  them.  The 
closer  rhey  are  kept  to  themselves,  not  allowed  to  mingle  even  when  small, 
the  better  and  sharper  defined  will  the  characteristics  of  the  varieties 
show. 

The  objections  to  mixed  carp  culture  are  that  you  can  never  tell  how 
many  carp  there  are  in  a  pond  until  you  draw  it  off,  and  that  all  do  not 
get  their  proportion  of  food  owing  to  difference  in  size  and  age.  But  with 
many  it  is  the  starting  point  in  the  culture,  and  soon  becoming  interested 
they  get  into  it  more  largely  and  have  a  system  of  ponds  adapted  to  their 


40  PBACTICAL  CARP  CULTURE. 

opportunities  and  necessities.  No  pike  or  game  fish  should  be  allowed 
either  in  a  hatching  or  mixed  culture  pond. 

Another  method  of  securing  a  crop  of  young  fish  practiced  by  small 
culturists  in  Europe  and  America,  and  finding  favor  and  being  practiced 
by  some  of  the  fish  commissions  of  the  States,  is  to  place  along  the  margin 
of  the  pond  boughs  of  trees  at  the  spawning  season.  The  carp  spawn 
among  the  boughs,  the  eggs  are  adhesive  and  attach  themselves  to  the 
Jeaves.  These  boughs  are  examined  every  day,  at  a  time  when  the  carp 
are  not  engaged  in  spawning,  and  those  that  have  a  fair  proportion  of 
eggs  on  are  removed  to  a  small  shallow  pond  of  12  feet  square  or  upwards, 
and  placed  in  the  water.  This  is  continued  until  the  carp  are  through 
spawning.  The  eggs  hatch  in  the  small  improvised  pond,  and  the  young 
carp  are  fed  there  until  they  attain  the  size  of  1  1-2  to  2  inches  long,  or  as 
long  as  they  give  evidence  of  doing  well  and  growing  rapidly.  When  for 
any  reason  they  do  not  seem  to  be  doing  well  they  should  l/e  removed  to 
the  larger  pond.  They  require  but  little  water  and  lood  for  the  first  two 
months  of  their  life,  though  in  so  small  a  pond  they  should  be  fed  regu- 
larly (see  chapter  on  artificial  feeding).  At  the  end  of  the  two  months  they 
can  betransfered  to  the  larger  pond  as  they  will  have  passed  beyond  the 
reach  of  the  greater  part  of  their  enemies. 

In  a  new  pond  used  for  mixed  culture  there  is  generally  little  or  no 
vegetation  about  the  margins.  The  boughs  will  serve  a  good  purpose  here 
by  being  placed  about  the  margins,  even  if  there  is  no  small  pond  to  re- 
move them  to.  The  leaves  will  catch  the  eggs  and  hold  them  until  they 
hatch.  In  fact  in  such  ponds  any  floating  material  such  as  grass,  hay, 
leaves  of  water  plants,  fine  chips  from  the  wood  yard,  anything  except 
wide  or  heavy  boards,  will  be  found  better  than  nothing.  We  recommend 
these  only  in  an  emergency.  The  natural  water  plants  are,  of  course,  the 
very  best  material  for  catching  and  holding  the  eggs.  And  there  is  no 
excuse  for  a  pond  being  without  this  vegetation  the  second  year. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

TAKING  THE  FISH  FROM  THE  PONDS — IMPLEMENTS  FOR  HANDLING  THEM — 
THE  SHIPMENT  OF  YOUNG  FRY. 

The  gathering  of  the  harvest  and  the  examination  of  the  crop  is  one 
of  the  pleasantest  features  of  carp  culture.  The  preparatory  step  to  the 
taking  of  the  fish  is  the  emptying  out  of  the  ponds,  and  this  operation  de- 
mands both  caution  and  the  closest  of  attention.  This  is  particularly  so  in 
the  stock  and  market  ponds,  though  the  principle  holds  eood  in  the 
hatching  pond  as  well,  but  because  of  the  smallness  of  the  fish  in  this 
pond,  a  panic  is  not  so  likely  to  occur  among  them.  Shut  off  the  water 
supply,  open  the  outlet,  if  the  pond  is  large  and  supplied  with  more  than 
one  outlet,  open  them  all  and  let  the  water  flow  slowly  and  gradually  off. 
As  it  settles,  in  large  ponds,  boats  are  used  around  the  edges  to  drive  the  fish 
into  the  center.  This  is  done  very  quietly  until  the  last  day  of  the  draw- 
ing off,  or  until  the  water  has  reached  the  ditches,  for  if  the  fish  get  badly 
scared  they  sometimes  settle  into  the  mud  in  large  numbers.  The  only 
way  to  remedy  such  a  catastrophe  is  to  shut  off  the  outlets  and  turn  on  as 
large  a  supply  of  water  as  possible  until  the  fish  have  recovered  themselves, 
when  the  drawing  off  is  resumed.  When  the  level  of  the  water  has 
reached  the  ditches  some  noise  is  made  to  drive  them  down  to  the  collec- 
tor. Where  there  are  a  great  many  large  fish  do  not  draw  the  water  down 
too  close  before  beginning  to  take  them  out.  When  crowded  into  too 
small  a  compass  they  get  greatly  excited  and  rush  about  seeking  escape, 
which  results  in  injury  and  frequent  loss  of  fish.  The  safest  method  then 
is  to  begin  taking  the  fish  as  soon  as  they  gather  in  sufficient  numbers  at 
the  collector.  This  may  be  done  in  market  and  stock  ponds  with  a  course 
meshed  seine  handled  by  two  men.  The  fish  should  be  weighed  as  they  are 
taken  out  in  lots  of  100  pounds  or  thereabouts,  a  record  kept  of  the  weight 
and  the  fish  either  sent  direct  to  the  market  or  placed  in  the  sale  pond. 
With  this  record  of  weights,  and  a  corresponding  record  of  weights  sold, 
you  will  know  how  much  fish  your  pond  has  yielded,  how  much  you  have 
sold,  and  what  weight  you  have  on  hand  to  supply  orders.  To  return  to 
the  fishing  out.  When  the  collector  is  relieved  of  fish  the  water  is  drawn 
down  still  further  and  the  operation  repeated  until  the  pond  is  completely 
dry  and  every  fish  is  out.  When  the  water  gets  too  low  for  seining  dip 
nets  are  used,  to  lift  out  the  remaining  fish. 

The  best  general  purpose  seine  where  but  one  is  to  be  used  in  tne  es- 
tablishment for  both  large  and  small  fish,  is  one  whose  meshes  measure 
one-half  of  an  inch.  It  should  be  of  strong  twine,  well  knotted,  and  not 
to  exceed  50  feet  in  length.  One  longer  than  this  of  that  mesh  will  be 
hard  dragging  over  the  mud.  It  must  be  provided  with  floats  and  sinkers. 


42 


PRACTICAL  CARP  CULTURE. 


For  clear  water  seining  two  or  more  seines  of  this  length  may  be  fastened 
end  to  end. 

In  smaller  ponds  various  kinds  of  home  made  dip  nets,  bag  nets,   and 
lift  nets  are  used  to  take  out  the  fish. 


BAG  NET. 

The  illustration  represents  a  bag  net  that  may  be  made  by  any 
farmer.  The  handle  is  7  or  8  feet  long  and  made  of  hickory  wood;  the 
ring  is  made  of  %  inch  iron  with  ends  welded  together  and  18  to  21  inches 
in  diameter.  At  8  a  screw  is  placed  to  keep  the  net  and  ring  from  slip- 
ping off  the  handle;  the  material  used  to  form  the  bag  is  bobby  netting. 


SINKER  NET. 

This  net  may  be  made  almost  any  size  to  suit.  The  ring  and  cross 
bows  are  made  of  an  iron  thick  in  proportion  to  its  size,  and  constitute 
the  only  sinker  necessary.  The  material  attached  to  the  ring  is  minnow 


PRACTICAL  CARP   CULTURE. 


43 


netting  and  is  soldjby  the  yard.  A  little  flower  paste  daubed  on  the  in- 
side of  the  bottom  occasionally  will  quickly  accustom  the  fish  to  visiting 
it.  The  illustration  is  so  simple  as  to  need  no  further  explanation. 


CANVASS   STRETCHER   FOR  HANDLING  CARP. 

In  transfering  carp  from  one  pond  to  another,  buckets,  tubs,  casks, 
etc.,  are  brought  into  use.  Where  the  ponds  are  not  so  far  apart  but  that 
the  transfer  is  made  by  hand  instead  of  by  vehicle,  a  stretcher  such  as 
presented  in  the  cut,  will  be  much  better  than  buckets,  casks,  or  cans. 
Contact  with  sides  or  bottom  will  not  injure  the  fish  and  the  carriers  can 
use  both  hands  to  the  load.  If  the  canvass  is  heavy  it  will  hold  water. 
By  placing  uprights  under  the  handles  it  can  be  used  in  a  wagon  instead 
of  casks. 

In  large  ponds  a  boat  is  a  necessity,  in  small  ones  it  is  desirable. 
The  best  for  use  is  a  flat  bottomed  skiff.  At  the  fishing  out  rubber  boots 
are  indispensable  to  every  boy  and  man  engaged. 

HOW  TO  TAKE  CARP  ALIVE  TO  MARKET. 

Thus  far  in  the  history  of  carp  in  America,  lew,  if  any  have  been 
placed  on  the  market  alive  for  table  use.  Many  have  been  sold  alive  at 
the  ponds  and  a  great  many  have  been  carted  to  market  and  sold  in  the 
ordinary  way — dead — and  at  prices  ranging  from  10  to  20  cents  a  pound, 
and  those  persons  once  eating  them  clamored  for  more.  But  we  believe 
we  are  on  the  eve  of  the  transition  period.  The  chartering  of  a  stock 
company  in  Illinois  referedto  (page  32)  is  evidence  of  it.  That. time  will 
come  when  the  supply  is  ready  to  keep  market  tanks  stocked.  The 
method  of  getting  them  alive  to  such  depots  will  have  to  rest  largely 
with  each  individual  culturist.  In  Germany  the  plan  is  to  place  them  in 
tanks  on  wagons  and  rush  the  wagons  to  the  nearest  navigated  water 
course,  empty  the  tanks  into  boats  with  perforated  bottoms,  and  in  these 
boats  transfer  them  to  the  market  towns,  where  they  are  placed  in  the 
tanks  of  the  .dealer.  In  this  country  railroad  cars  will  have  to  take  the 
place  of  boats.  But  when  the  supply  is  ready  and  the  demand  created, 
railroad  companies,  ever  ready  for  fast  freights,  will  afford  facilities  in 
the  shape  of  tanked  cars.  The  one  question  then  is  their  transportation 
alive  to  the  railroad  stations,  at  that  time,  and  to  the  local  markets  in  the 
meantime.  This  may  be  done  in  barrels  and  casks,  or  better  in  water 
tight  boxes  from  2  to  2>£  feet  wide,  and  long  enough  to  slip  comfortably 
into  a  wagon  box  crossways,  and  of  any  height  to  suit.  The  advantage  of 
such  boxes  are  that  they  fit  close  together  and  no  space  is  wasted,  and  in 


44  PRACTICAL    CARP  CULTURE. 

going  up  or  down  hill  the  water  level  is  formed  on  a  narrow  bed,  and  does 
not  change  the  weight  and  stress  from  one  end  of  the  wagon  to  the  other, 
as  in  the  case  of  a  wagon  length  tank,  neither  are  the  fish  so  liable  to  in- 
jury by  crowding.  These  boxes  may  be  made  either  of  tin  or  wood  with 
close-fitting,  lifting  covers,  each  cover  to  have  in  its  center  an  aperture 
six  inches  in  diameter;  this  aperture  to  have  a  rim  projecting  below  the 
cover  about  two  inches ;  this  rim  at  the  bottom  to  be  covered  with  meshed 
wire.  If  the  boxes  are  made  of  tin,  the  material  should  be  the  very  best 
XXXX  quality,  with  the  sides  and  ends  projecting  below  the  tin  bottom 
at  least  %  of  an  inch,  then  in  this  space  below  the  tin  bottom  fit  in  a  false 
bottom  of  one  inch  lumber  and  tack  it  to  the  pi  ejecting  sides  and  ends; 
this  false  bottom  then  projects  1^  of  an  inch  beyond  the  tin  sides  and  ends 
and  protects  it  from  grating  and  wearing  out.  A  wagon  loaded  with  such 
boxes  and  driven  rapidly  will  convey  a  great  many  fish  without  injury, 
and  with  comparatively  little  or  no  slopping.  If  the  journey  is  a  long  one 
the  water  can  be  changed  by  the  way  as  necessary. 

The  sale  of  carp  alive  for  table  use  is  of  great  importance  to  the  young 
industry,  and  we  cannot  insist  too  strenuously  upon  the  necessity  of  cul- 
turists  everywhere  encouraging  market  men  to  engage  in  so  handling 
them.  Where  necessary  in  the  introduction  of  it  culturists  will  find  it 
a  good  investment  to  go  to  the  extent  even  of  helping  the  market  men 
provide  tanks  for  the  keeping  of  them  alive,  and  advertising  the  fact 
broadly,  that  they  are  on  sale  alive,  and  in  educating  the  people  of  a  com- 
munity, through  circulars  and  public  prints,  to  the  difference  between  a 
fish  that  dies  of  suffocation  and  has  been  shipped  dying  and  dead  from 
one  end  of  the  country  to  the  other,  and  a  fish  that  has  been  taken  from 
pure  fresh  water  and  immediately  killed. 

All  fish  used  for  food  should  be  killed,  not  allowed  to  die  or  smother 
to  death,  out  of  their  element.  Mercy  and  humanity  should  lead  us  to 
shorten  their  sufferings.  Hygienic  considerations  should  cause  us  to 
draw  their  blood,  which  cannot  be  done  in  death.  The  blade  of  a  common 
pocket  knife  pressed  in  at  the  juncture  of  the  head  and  body,  severing  the 
spinal  column,  and  pressed  downward  to  the  lower  edge  of  the  gill,  will 
both  kill  suddenly  and  draw  the  blood.  The  thought  of  eating  a  drowned 
chicken,  hog,  or  beef  critter  would  be  sufficient  to  turn  the  stomachs  of 
most  people.  To  offer  the  same  for  sale  would  be  an  offense  punishable 
by  law.  And  yet  are  not  the  cases  of  the  drowned  chicken  and  smoth- 
ered fish  parallels?  Both  die  of  suffocation.  Custom  and  habit  are  all 
that  render  the  eating  of  the  one  less  repulsive  than  the  eating  of  the 
other.  The  culture  of  carp,  if  it  does  not  revolutionize  this  custom  of  eat- 
inir  fish  that  have  died,  will  at  least  afford  opportunity  to  those  who  desire 
it,  to  have  their  fish  taken  from  the  water,  killed,  dressed,  and  prepared 
for  cooking  before  their  eyes,  for  carp  will  be  brought  to  market  in  tanks, 
and  fish  markets  will  no  longer  be  places  of  stale  odors  that  you  want  to 
get  out  of  as  soon  as  you  can,  but  places  where  you  will  delight  to  linger, 
and  watch  the  sporting  of  the  carp  in  their  glass-faced  tanks,  where  you 
can  select  the  one  you  want,  and  take  it  Ijorae  with  you,  ready  for  the  pot, 
the  pan,  or  the  oven. 


PRACTICAL    CARP  GUI/TURF. 


46 


Ideas  as  pertinent  to  common  sense,  taste  and  judgment  as  are  these, 
quickly  take  hold  of  the  public  mind,  and  with  the  increasing  demand  for 
live  fish  up  will  go  the  price  of  carp,  as  it  is  practically  the  only  tish  that 
can  be  so  furnished.  Thus  in  encouraging  and  aiding  the  market  man  in 
the  construction  of  tanks,  etc.,  you  are  but  making  a  sale  for  your  fish  at 
advanced  prices.  In  a  short  time  after  the  placing  of  live  carp  on  the 
market,  dealers  will  compete  with  each  other  to  get  the  handling  of  them. 

SHIPPING   CARP. 

The  shipment  of  Carp  for  stocking  purposes  has  in  the  past  been  the 
leading  source  of  revenue  to  the  culturists  in  this  country.  In  the  future 
it  will  continue  a  source  of  revenue  and  a  prominent  feature  of  the  busi- 
ness. 80  few  losses  have  occurred  by  death  iu  the  shipment  of  carp,  as  to 
make  it  quite  remarkable,  when  we  consider  the  newness  of  the  business 
and  the  inexperience  of  those  engaged  in  it.  This  is  owing  in  part  to  the 
care  exercised  by  the  shippers  and  in  part  to  the  great  vitality  of  the  carp. 
Some  special  cases  demonstrating  this  wonderful  vitality  you  will  find 
related  in  the  (i  Miscellaneous  Appendix." 


A  WOODEN'  JACKET  SHIPPING  CAN. 

The  wooden  jacket  A  protects  the  tin  from  injury.  The  neck  C  and 
the  strainer  B  prevent  the  water  from  splashing  out  during  the  transit. 
The  can  should  only  be  lilled  to  within  one  inch  of  the  shoulder.  At  D 
the  strainer  B  is  fastened  by  a  wire  and  sealed  if  necessary  to  prevent 
promiscuous  handling  of  the  fish.  If  necessary  in  warm  weather  a  small 
lump  of  ice  can  be  kept  in  the  strainer.  As  the  strainer  is  perforated  at 
the  bottom,  the  water  in  the  can  can  be  changed  at  will.  Under  no  cir- 
cumstances place  a  close  cover  on  the  can  as  it  shuts  off  the  air  from  the 
water,  and  the  fish  will  quickly  exhaust  the  oxygen  in  the  can  and  tli*»n 
die. 

The  size  of  can  to  be  used  in  the  shipment  of  fish  for  stocking  pur- 


46  PBACTIC   CALABP  CULTURE. 

poses  depends  on  the  size  and  number  of  fish  to  be  shipped,  the  distance 
they  are  to  travel  and  the  length  of  time  it  will  take  them  to  reach  their 
destination.  Carp  kept  in  clear  running  water  a  few  days  previous  to 
shipment,  without  food,  will  travel  much  farther,  and  in  better  condition, 
than  when  taken  directly  from  their  food  and  from  dirty  water.  In  the 
latter  case  they  pollute  the  water.  The  temperature  of  the  water  has  much 
to  do  with  the  distance  they  can  be  shipped.  The  best  temperature  is 
from  40°  to  50°  F.  Max  Von  Demborne,  a  German  authority,  gives  the 
following  table,  which  will  furnish  an  excellent  base  of  calculation : 

Excess  of  weight  of  water  over  the  weight  of  the  carp  during  a  jour- 
ney of  10  to  40  hours. 
Length  of  time  of  journey.  Water  should  weigh. 

10  hours 9  times  the  weight  of  carp. 

20      "      12       " 

30      "      15      " 

40      ••      18       " 

A  little  judicious  work  with  the  express  agent  at  the  shipping  point 
will  materially  aid  in  the  successful  transportation  of  the  carp.  This  is 
particularly  true  where  more  than  one  express  company  is  represented  at 
the  place  of  shipment,  as  each  will  desire  to  secure  the  patronage.  A 
way  bill  accompanies  every  package  they  send  out.  This  way  bill,  as 
a  rule,  passes  through  the  hands  of  the  several  agents  on  the  different 
lines  of  railroad  over  which  the  package  passes.  Such  a  bill  will  accom- 
pany every  can  of  carp.  Require  the  agent,  then,  at  the  shipping  point, 
to  insert  in  the  way  bill  a  statement  that  the  water  on  the  fish  is  to  be 
changed  every  24  hours,  for  any  other  water  that  is  fit  to  drink.  A 
printed  statement  pasted  on  the  can  and  addressed  to  the  express  mes- 
sengers on  the  trains,  calling  attention  to  the  statement  in  the  way  bill, 
and  explaining  how  the  water  may  be  shired  off  through  the  wire  grating 
of  the  top,  and  if  other  good  water  is  not  convenient,  the  same  water  can 
be  poured  back  again,  it  be^ng  aerated  by  the  process,  will  generally 
secure  the  attention  desired,  and  will  enable  the  culturist  to  ship  a  greater 
weight  of  carp  in  a  lesser  weight  of  water  than  would  otherwise  be  possi- 
ble. 

Wooden  jacket  cans  are  advantageous  in  that  they  receive  little  dam- 
age in  transportation.  They  are,  however,  more  expensive  than  other 
cans,  and  besides  are  not  always  available,  while  any  tinsmith  can  make 
an  ordinary  shipping  can.  Many  styles  of  can  have  been  tried,  and  there 
is  a  field  for  thought  in  the  construction  of  a  can  that  will  be  self-operat- 
ing and  keep  the  water  within  it  aerated.  There  is  a  natural  principle, 
however,  that  the  greater  the  surface  of  water  exposed  to  the  air,  in  a 
given  body  of  water,  the  more  oxyen  will  it  absorb  from  the  atmosphere. 
In  harmony  with  this  principle,  cans  should  be  built  low  and  broad,  nar- 
rower on  the  bottom  and  flaring  up  to  the  shoulders.  A  can  14  inches  high 
to  the  shoulder  should  be  from  5  to  7  inches  greater  in  diameter  at  the 
shoulder  than  at  the  bottom.  The  bottom  should  be  broad  enough  to  pre- 
vent all  possibility  of  upsetting.  This  gives  a  shallower  body  of  water 
with  a  larger  surface  area.  These  cans  should  be  constructed  of  XXXX 


PRACTICAL  CARP  CULTURE.  47 

tin,  with  the  sides  projecting  %  of  an  inch  below  the  bottom,  and  a  false 
bottom  made  of  1-inch  lumber  fitted  into  this  rim  ;  this  will  let  the  wood 
project  3^  of  an  inch  and  be  the  best  possible  protection  to  the  bottom  of 
the  can.  The  flaring  sides  keep  all  other  packages  from  coming  in  con- 
tact with  it  except  at  the  shoulders,  where  resistence  is  the  greatest,  and 
where  if  by  any  accident  a  hole  should  be  punched,  it  will  not  be  fatal  to 
the  fish.  The  aperture  or  neck  of  the  can  should  not  be  less  than  6  inches 
in  diameter,  as  in  the  shipment  of  spawners  or  large  fish  it  is  quite  dim- 
cult  to  get  them  out  of  a  hole  that  you  easily  get  them  in  at.  The  reason  is 
that  you  present  them  head  first  to  the  hole,  the  scales  and  fin  projec- 
tions then  are  favorable  to  the  easy  passage  of  the  body.  You  shire  the 
water  out  of  a  can  and  the  fish  presents  itself  tail  first;  the  scales  and  fins 
are  then  unfavorable  to  the  passage  of  the  body,  and  the  hole  is  too  small 
to  facilitate  the  turning  of  the  fish,  and  there  is  a  chance  of  damage  in 
taking  out  tail  first,  unless  the  aperture  in  the  neck  is  amply  large.  In 
filling  a  can  for  shipment  never  fill  quite  up  to  the  shoulder.  When  the 
water  is  above  the  shoulder  the  area  upon  which  the  atmosphere  acts 
narrows  very  rapidly,  and  in  the  jolting  of  the  car  there  is  very  little 
breaking  up  of  the  water.  On  the  other  hand,  with  the  water  below  the 
shoulder,  you  get  the  greatest  possible  surface  and  with  every  movement 
of  the  car  the  water  pitching  up  the  side  of  the  can  comes  in  contact  with 
the  shoulders  is  broken  up,  aerated  and  falls  back  in  better  condition  for 
the  fish  than  before  leaving  the  body.  So  far  very  few  carp  have  been 
successfully  shipped  during  hot  weather.  The  practical  shipping  season 
may  be  said  to*extend  from  the  first  of  October  to  the  first  of  the  following 
June. 

Spring  or  well  water  may  be  used  to  ship  carp  in,  but  before  using  it 
should  be  very  thoroughly  broken  up  and  aerated.  This  may  be  accom- 
plished by  whipping  the  water  with  a  wire  dip  net  or  by  passing  it  through 
a  sieve,  letting  it  drop  some  distance  through  the  air  to  a  tub  or  other 
vessel. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

ENEMIES  OF  THE  CARP— HOW  TO  DESTROY  THEM. 

One  of  the  great  essentials  to  successful  carp  culture  in  their  protection 
against  their  enemies,  which  are  legion.  It  is  riot  within  the  province  of 
this  work  to  enter  into  a  detailed  description  of  each  of  these  enemies,  but 
simply  to  point  out  the  most  destructive  of  them,  and  provide  the  remedy 
for  their  extinction.  Giving  an  outline  of  the  natural  history  with  illus- 
trations of  those,  with  which  the  general  reader  would  be  least  familiar. 
It  is  only  through  a  knowledge  of  these  enemies  that  we  can  successfully 
combat  them.  Many  of  these  enemies  are  dangerous  only  to  the  eggs  and 
young  fish,  while  others  attack  even  the  largest  of  carp.  But  it  is  among 
the  young  that  danger  and  loss  are  greatest.  The  eggs  and  young  fry 
being  much  sought  after  by  other  fish,  bugs,  larvae,  etc. 

The  first  in  the  list  of  destroyers  we  must  place  the  carp  itself.  That 
the  spawners  will  prey  on  their  own  eggs  and  young  is  not  disputed.  It 
is  also  true  that  in  mixed  culture,  where  the  spawners  are  nof  by  them- 
selves, that  those  not  spawing  will  join  in  the  work  of  eating  the  eggs  and 
young.  This  may  be  largely  overcome  by  furnishing  them  plenty  of  other 
food;  but  the  better  plan  is  to  catch  the  eggs  on  evergreen  or  willow 
branches  and  remove  them  to  a  small  improvised  pond,  where  they  re- 
main until  large  enough  to  get  out  of  the  way  or  protect  themselves.  If 
in  a  regular  hatching  pond  remove  the  spawners  when  their  work  of 
spawning  is  done. 

Among  the  domesticated  fowls  geese  and  ducks  allowed  access  to  the 
pond  become  the  most  persevering  and  inveterate  of  fishers,  and  it  is 
really  surprising  how  large  a  fish  they  will  catch.  If  too  large  to  swallow 
whole  they  will  none  the  less  hang  on  until  they  take  a  piece  of  the  body 
or  tail  with  them.  The  maimed  fish,  if  it  lives,  is  subject  to  disease  and 
liable  to  spread  it  among  the  other  fish.  Carp  and  these  fowls  cannot  be 
all  successfully  raised  in  and  on  the  same  water.  In  ponds  of  shallow 
water  the  hog  quickly  learns  to  fish  successfully,  and  must  be  debarred 
the  water  privileges  of  the  fish  pond.  The  access  of  cattle  and  horses  to 
tlie  pond  is  not  injurious. 

WATER  SNAKES 

Are  very  hard  on  young  carp,  and  each  snake  will  require  from 
25  to  40  young  fish  a  day  to  satisfy  his  appetite.  During  the  summer 
of  1883  Dr.  Rud.  Hessel  killed  at  the  Government  carp  ponds  at 
Washington,  D.  C.,  1,050  snakes,  almost  every  one  had  young  carp  in 
their  stomach.  Similar  reports  come  from  many  culturists.  The  remedy 
is  an  active  shot-gun  policy:  use  fine  bird  shot.  In  the  list  of  active 
reptile,  and  animal  enemies  of  the  carp  may  be  included  roaches,  crawfish 


PRACTICAL   CARP  CULTURE.  49 

tadpoles,  frogs,  terrapins,  turtles,  muskrats,  water-rats,  coons  and  mink. 
The  shot-gun  policy  will  lessen  the  number  of  these,  but  ingenius  devices 
and  traps  will  also  be  required.  Rake  the  frog  spawn  out  on  the  bank  und 
let  it  dry  in  the  sun,  and  a  boy  with  a  light  shot-gun  will  have  great  sport 
in  getting  rid  of  the  old  frogs,  whose  chief  depredation  is  on  the  eggs  of 
the  fish.  Though  they  will  swallow  fish  so  large  that  the  tail  will  stick 
out  of  their  mouths. 

CRAWFISH. 

Dr.  E.  Sterling,  of  Cleveland,  Ohio,  gives  the  following  method  of 
rapturing  crawfish:  Take  30  to  50  osier  twigs,  or  split  white  ash  sticks, 
according  to  the  size  used,  and  three  feet  in  length,  form  a  bundle  of  the 
whole  and  bind  at  each  end  with  strong  cord  or  wire,  separate  the  twigs 
or  splints  in  the  center  of  the  bundle  by  means  of  sticks  10,  15  and  20 
inches  long  and  forked  at  each  end,  so  that  when  in  place  the  trap  will  be 
spindle-like  in  shape,  with  the  twigs  evenly  distributed  about  its  circum- 
ference and  centre,  and  far  enough  apart  to  allow  easy  entrance  for  the 
fish,  but  from  which  they  will  not  readily  escape.  Bait  the  inside  with 
fresh  meat  of  any  kind,  only  see  that  it  is  fresh  and  bleody  if  possible; 
set  the  same  with  the  current  in  running  water ;  if  blood  can  be  procured, 
pour  a  pint  or  so  on  the  bait;  it  will  taint  the  stream  for  a  long  distance. 
I  have  watched  crawfish  in  great  numbers  follow  up  the  track  or  scent 
thus  made  from  30  rods  below  the  trap,  and  have  known  six  and  eight 
quarts  taken  at  a  single  lift.  Should  one  desire  a  more  substantial  and 
comely  rig,  it  can  be  made  by  driving  a  smooth,  stout  stick  lengthwise 
through  the  center  of  the  bundle,  slide  the  tied  ends  down  on  the  stick 
until  the  whole  bulges  to  a  diameter  of  20  inches  or  more  in  the  centre, 
fasten  the  tied  ends  of  the  twigs  to  the  centre  stick,  put  three  hoops  of 
proper  size  over  the  whole  and  fasten  with  fine  copper  wire.  In  order  to 
make  hiding  places  for  the  crawfish  and  so  retain  them  in  the  trap,  num- 
bers of  the  twigs  should  also  traverse  in  various  directions. 

Another  and  simpler  method  of  dealing  with  th^  crawfish  is  to  take 
an  ordinary  minow  net,  tie  some  fresh  beef  (the  bloodier  the  better)  inside 
the  bottom  of  the  net,  sink  it  in  the  water  where  the  crawfish  are  most 
plentiful.  The  scent  of  the  bloody  meat  will  attract  them,  and  greedily 
they  fasten  to  it  and  will  hold  on  until  taken  off. 

The  Bulletin  of  the  United  States  Fish  Commission  says  of  them: 
Great  quantities  of  these  Crustacea  are  captured  in- Louisiana  for  the  New 
Orleans  market,  where  they  are  highly  esteemed  for  making  "gumbo,"  a 
dish  prepared  by  the  Creole  cooks.  The  method  of  capture  is  simple.  A 
piece  of  cord  two  foot  long  is  tied  at  one  end  to  the  middle  of  a  light  stick 
about  a  foot  long.  To  the  other  end  of  the  cord  is  securely  tied  a  small 
bit  of  meat,  usually  fat  bacon.  An  indefinite  number  of  these  machines, 
perhaps  two  dozen,  may  be  used  by  one  person.  He  tosses  then  out  into 
the  muddy  ponds  or  "burrow  pits,"  near  the  levees.  He  then  wades 
gently  through  the  pond  with  a  pail  or  basket  in  one  hand,  and,  visiting 
each  line  in  turn,  slowly  raises  it  out  of  the  water  and  drops  the  catch 
into  the  receptacle  provided. 


50  PRACTICAL  CARP  CULTURE. 

The  crawfish  not  only  prey  on  the  eggs  and  small  fish,  but  are  a  con- 
stant menace  to  the  dams  and  embankments  of  ponds.  Many  means 
have  been  devised  to  prevent  their  boring  the  dams;  such  as  a 
close  sheeting  of  lumber  in  the  dam;  lining  the  inside  of  the 
dam  with  clippings  from  a  tin  shop,  on  the  plan  of  shingling  a  build- 
ing, one  course  overlaping  the  other;  either  of  these  will  undoubtedly  aid 
in  preventing  their  work,  but  in  instances  both  have  failed.  The  best 
method  we  know  of  completely  circumventing  them,  is  in  constructing 
the  embankments,  beginning  at  the  pond  bottom  lay  a  course  of  fine  sand 
from  8  to  12  inches  wide  clear  up  through  to  the  inner  breast  of  the  top 
of  the  dam.  The  clay  or  loam  of  the  dam  must  not  be  allowed  to  mix  with 
this  sand  vein,  boards  set  up  on  edge  along  side  of  stakes  and  raised  with 
the  dam  and  the  sand  vein  will  facilitate  the  keeping  of  them  apart.  A 
dam  thus  completed  has  the  regular  material  of  the  dam  on  either  side  of 
the  sand  vein,  the  great  bulk  being  on  the  outer  side.  The  crawfish  begins 
his  work,  he  penetrates  as  far  as  the  sand  vein  and  as  fast  as  he  drills  it 
falls  in  on  him.  He  may  start  other  holes,  but  the  sand  will  invariably 
beat  him,  and  disgusted  with  himself  he  falls  an  easy  victim  to  any  of  the 
traps  described. 

MUSKRATS. 

The  depredations  of  muskrats  on  the  embankments  of  carp  ponds  and 
on  the  carp  themselves  have  been  a  prolific  source  of  annoyance  and 
trouble  to  the  culturist,  and  consequently  have  been  the  subject  of  much 
thought.  The  greatest  danger  from  them  is  the  burrowing  of  the  embank- 
ments and  starting  of  leaks  that  may  result  in  washouts  and  great  loss. 
The  first  step,  then,  in  protection  against  this  danger,  is  to  build  the  dams 
and  embankments  only  from  12  to  15  inches  above  high  water  level. 
Their  nests  must  be  above  the  water,  and  this  narrow  margin  brings  them 
too  close  to  the  surface  of  the  dam,  and  they  will  not  attempt  it.  If  they 
build  nests  or  houses  on  the  high  ground  side  of  the  pond,  there  is  no 
danger  of  a  washout,  and  they  will  sooner  or  later  become  victims  of  a 
persistent  persecution.  The  following  trap  will  be  an  efficient  aid  in  their 
extermination : 


MUSK  RAT  TRAP. 

Any  old  barrel  will  do  to  make 'the  trap  out  of.  Build  a  platform  all 
around  it,  as  shown  in  the  illustration,  bore  small  auger  holes  in  those  parts 
of  the  heads  of  the  barrel  which  are  below  water,  cut  a  six  inch  square 
hole  in  the  upper  side  of  the  barrel,  place  parsnips,  carrots,  potatoes, 
apples,  etc.,  in  the  barrel,  launch  it  convenient  to  their  nests,  attaching  a 
small  rope  to  it  to  haul  it  in  with,  keep  your  trap  baited,  kill  those  that 


PRACTICAL  CARP  CULTURE.  51 

you  trap  as  soon  as  caught,  if  not  the  others  become  wary,  and  the 
rodents  will  soon  become  scarce.  We  are  indebted  for  the  idea  of  this 
trap  to  Charles  Sturr,  of  Preston,  Ohio. 

Steel  traps  placed  lengthwise  of  their  holes  and  slightly  concealed 
will  capture  them  as  they  go  in  or  come  out.  Whenever  their  holes  or  the 
entrance  to  their  nest  is  exposed  the  following  will  be  found  a  certain 
method  of  extinction.  Finely  powdered  brimstone  and  saltpetre  in  the 
proportion  of  six  pounds  of  brimstone  to  one  of  saltpetre.  Use  about  one 
pound  of  the  mixture  to  a  hole.  Place  the  mixture  on  a  piece  of  tin,  sheet 
iron,  board  or  flat  stone,  place  in  the  hole  and  light  the  mixture.  After 
fairly  burning  close  the  hole  with  sods.  The  saltpetre  insures  the  com- 
bustion of  the  brimstone  and  the  fumes  will  penetrate  every  minute  rami- 
fication of  the  nest,  assuring  death  to  everything  within. 

MINK. 

There  is,  perhaps,  no  greater  enemy  of  the  carp  pond  than  the  mink. 
It  is  hardly  credible  the  number  of  carp  that  a  single  mink  will  destroy  in 
one  night.  This  is  particularly  true  in  the  winter  season,  when  the  pond 
is  covered  with  ice  and  the  carp  are  lethargic  and  dull,  if  there  is  any 
opening  through  which  the  mink  can  go  in  and  out,  he  will  bring  the  carp 
out  as  fast  as  he  can  make  the  trip,  and  pile  them,  generally,  heads  all 
one  way.  He  nips  them  usually,  in  cold  weather  when  he  can  get  the 
hold  he  wants,  just  back  of  the  neck,  and  the  marks  left  are  so  fine  as  to 
almost  need  a  microscope  to  see  them.  The  mink  is  a  luxury  too  ex- 
pensive for  carp  ponds.  He  has,  however,  a  fatal  weakness,  and  almost 
invariable  enters  a  pond  at  the  same  place  and  in  the  same  way,  by  slid- 
ing down  the  bank ;  these  tracks  lead  to  his  discovery  and  doom. 
Set  a  steel  trap  on  his  slide-way,  just  under  the  water,  where  he  may  slide 
into  it.  C.  B.  Pettie,  of  Blooming  Prairie,  Minn.,  after  having  all  his  carp 
destroyed  in  a  single  night  in  the  winter  of  '87  and  '88,  by  a  single  mink, 
caught  the  fellow  in  four  steel  traps. 

TURTLES 

May  be  caught  on  large  cat-fish  hooks  baited  with  chunks  of  raw  meat, 
too  large  for  the  carp  to  swallow.  A  few  boards  placed  in  the  pond  for 
them  to  sun  themselves  on,  makes  them  a  good  mark  for  the  rifle,  which 
is  their  surest  exterminator. 

BIRDS, 

Eagles,  herons,  cranes,  bitterns,  rails,  marsh  hens,  owls,  fish  hawks, 
wild  geese  and  ducks,  and  the  king  fisher,  all  of  these  are  great  fishers; 
they  may  be  trapped  and  shot.  Perhaps  the  most  inveterate  of  them  all 
is  the  king  fisher.  He  may  be  trapped  in  numerous  ways.  We  will  only 
give  two:  First,  by  driving  three  or  four  stakes  in  the  shallow  part  of  the 
pond,  allowing  them  to  project  above  the  water  from  4  to  6  feet.  On  the 
top  of  these  stakes  nail  pieces  of  boards  large  enougli  to  hold  steel  traps; 
set  the  traps  and  fasten  them  with  wires  or  chains  to  the  stakes.  The 
birds  alight  to  watch  for  food  and  are  caught.  Second,  fix  a  dead  fish 
from  2  to  4  inches  long  in  a  natural  position  on  a  piece  of  board  8  inches 


o2  PRACTICAL   CARP  CULTURE. 

wide  and  about  4  feet  long,  anchor  this  board  about  '2  inches  beneath  the 
water;  the  king  fisher  diving  for  the  fish  will  strike  the  board  hard 
enough  to  kill  himself.  With  the  steel-  traps  unite  the  shot-gun  policy  on 
all  other  birds  and  larger  enemies  of  the  carp. 

OTHER    FISH. 

All  other  kinds  of  fish  in  the  pond  are  inimical  to  the  best  interests  of 
the  carp,  and  their  presence  should  be  persistently  fought.  If  there  be 
any  that  do  not  prey  directly  on  the  carp,  they  indirectly  do  so  by  con- 
suming the  food  that  the  carp  should  have.  Despite  the  best  efforts  of  the 
culturist  these  stranger  fish  are  continually  getting  into  the  ponds.  Some 
undoubtedly  are  transfered  in  the  egg,  by  being  attached  to  the  fur  of 
water  animals  and  the  feathers  of  aquatic  birds  that  have  come  from 
other  bodies  of  water,  whil§  others  undoubtedly  coine  up  from  crawfish 
holes,  as  most  ponds  are  located  where  water  has  formely  stood,  and  as 
the  spot  is  again  overflowed  they  rise  with  the  water.  Among  the  worst 
of  these  foreign  pests  and  the  hardest  to  get  rid  of  is 

THE  BLACK-HEADED  MINNOW — (PIMEPHALES  PROMELAS,  RAP.) 

Hugo  Mulertt,  ol  Cincinnati,  O.,  writing  of  this  species  in  American 
Carp  Culture,  of  June  1887,  says:  The  head  is  almost  globular  and  black- 
ish in  males,  body  much  elongated  and  strong,  but  little  compressed  on 
sides,  scales  small  and  crowded,  eyes  and  mouth  very  small,  the  dorsal 
fin  showing  a  dark  blotch,  color  of  body  dusky.  Females  smaller,  more 
delicate  in  structure,  compressed  on  sides  and  of  lighter  color,  with  an  in- 
distinct lateral  band. 

This  is  one  of  the  most  common  species  of  minnows  found  in  this 
country,  and  being  only  a  minnow,  this  little  fish  has  heretofore  been 
very  little  noticed,  more  particularly  in  regard  to  the  method  of  its  repro- 
duction. 

As  their  breeding  season  approaches  in  the  spring,  the  head  of  the 
male  turns  jet  black,  and  numerous  prominent  white  and  homey  tubercles 
appear  on  the  forehead,  the  entire  body  becoming  blackish,  darkest  on 
the  back,  leaving  two  lighter  vertical  bars  of  a  quarter  of  an  inch  in  width 
on  each  side,  one  of  these  right  back  of  the  gills,  and  the  other  immediate- 
ly under  the  dorsal  fin.  The  fins  also  undergo  changes  in  their  coloring, 
the  dorsal,  pectoral  and  caudal  fins  become  shaded  with  black,  and  the 
dark  spot  in  the  dorsal  fin  becomes  larger  and  deep  black.  In  addition  to 
this  shading  on  the  fins,  the  two  smaller  spines  in  front  of  the  largest  one 
in  the  dorsal  appear  inflamed  and  are  spread  in  a  position  pointing  toward 
the  head  of  the  fish,  which,  at  casual  examination,  makes  this  fin  appear 
injured.  The  female  keeps  its  customary  appearance,  with  perhaps  the 
only  difference  that  the  lateral  band  is  more  distinct  than  usual  and  its 
belly  larger. 

At  this  time  the  male  selects  a  stand,  under  a  floating  broad  leaf,  for 
instance  that  of  the  pond  lily,  and  induces  the  females  to  come  and  de- 
posit their  eggs.  The  eggs  are  deposited  on  the  lower  side  of  this  leaf,  one 
at  a  time,  and,  being  adhesive,  remain  there.  To  accomplish  this,  the 
fish  twists  its  body  and,  darting  against  the  leaf,  deposits  the  egg  .in  the 


PRACTICAL  CARP  CULTURE.  58 

moment  of  contact.  After  one  female  has  deposited  all  her  eggs,  others 
are  induced  to  do  the  same  on  the  same  leaf;  thus  leaves  may  be  found 
containing,  in  large  patches,  deposits  in  different  stages  of  maturity; 
some  ready  to  hatch,  while  others  may  have  been  deposited  only  an  hour 
before.  The  male  remains  below  the  leaf  until  the  eggs  are  all  hatched, 
allowing  nothing  to  approach  them.  He  does  that  with  so  much  energy 
that  even  carp  fifty  times  his  own  size  he  will  attack  and  drive  away,  and 
should  a  dragon-fly  alight  on  his  leaf,  he  will  jump  out  of  the  water  and 
scare  it  off'. 

As  the  minnow  is  very  destructive  to  fish  spawn  himself,  he  seems  to 
judge  others  by  his  own  character,  and  with  good  reason,  as  such  deposits, 
deprived  of  his  protection,  are  invariably  soon  devoured  by  other  fishes. 

The  black-headed  minnow  begins  to  spawn  at  the  age  of  one  year,  be- 
ginning early  in  the  spring  and  continuing  throughout  the  summer.  Their 
eggs  hatch  after  four  to  six  days,  according  to  the  temperature.  The  male 
attains  a  size  of  three  inches,  while  the  female  rarely  measures  more  than 
two  inches  in  length.  When  quite  young,  minnows  swim  in  shoals  near 
the  surface. 

Although  minnows  are  not  a  worthless  fish  in  one  sense  of  the  word, 
as  they  constitute  the  almost  exclusive  food  of  many  of  our  table  fish, 
tlu»y  are  a  nuisance  to  the  fish-culturist,  and  may  be  ranked  among  fishes 
as  the  English  sparrow  is  among  birds.  Its  destructiveness  knows  no 
limits;  it  devours  spawn  and  young  of  other  fish,  and  continually  wor- 
ries other  more  useful  and  peaceful  varieties.  The  species  above  described 
frequent  water  of  any  quality,  and  it  is  often  wondered  how  minnows  ever 
came  into  certain  water  basins  which  had  no  connection  whatever  with 
creeks  or  springs.  This,  however,  may  be  explained  by  considering  the 
adhesive  nature  of  their  eggs,  and  the  fact  that  frogs  and  toads  frequent 
the  same  waters  and  deposit  their  spawn  upon  similar  objects  and  at  the 
same  time  as  the  minnow.  What  would  be  more  natural  than  to  suspect 
that  these  amphibians  transplant  the  eggs  from  one  locality  to  another  on 
the  moist  skin  of  their  backs?  The  practical  aspect  of  this  discovery  the 
pisciculturist  will  readily  appreciate,  for  he  can  exclude  the  destructive 
minnows  by  excluding  the  frog  and  toad,  when  already  present,  by  de- 
stroying their  spawn  or  capturing  the  male  from  under  the  leaf. 

INSECTS,  LARV/E,  AND    BUGS. 

Carp  ponds  have  suffered  far  more  from  this  class  of  enemies  than 
rulturists  are  generally  aware  of.  A  knowledge  of  their  habits  and 
natural  history  is  essential  to  successful  protection  against  their  ravages, 
which  are  confined  largely  to  the  eating  of  the  fish  eggs,  and  capture  of 
the  young  fish  under  two  inches  in  length.  Prominent  among  those  that 
feed  on  the  eggs,  but  do  not  harm  the  fish,  is 

THE  WATER  A  SELL. 

(Asellus  aquaticusO 

The  illustration  presents  a  good  idea  of  this  little  crustacean,  which  is 
not  more  than  one-half  of  an  inch  long.  It  crawls  upon.the  bottom  of  the 


54  PRACTICAL    CARP  CULTURE. 

pond  and  over  the  water  plants  searching  for  food.  They  will  make  three 
meals  a  day  on  fish  eggs,  if  they  can  find  them,  and  lunch  frequently  be- 
tween meals  on  the  same  dainty. 


THE  WATER  FLEA  (enlarged.)  THE  WATER  ASELL  (enlarged.) 

THE  WATER  FLEA. 

(Gamarus  pulex.) 

Known  as  flea  crab,  buck  crab,  etc.,  is  another  voracious  enemy  of  the 
crustacean  tribe.  It  is  closely  related  to  the  shrimp  found  in  the  ocean 
It  has  a  curved  back,  as  shown  in  the  illustration,  and  lies  on  its  side 
while  burrowing  through  the  water.  In  all  stages  of  its  life  it  feeds  upon 
fish  eggs.  It  makes  some  return,  however,  by  becoming  itself  an  excel- 
lent morsel  of  food  for  young  fish. 

THE  COMMON  POND  SNAIL, 

(Lymnea  fragilis.) 

Which  consumes  large  numbers  of  them,  and  is  too  well  known  to  need 
any  description. 

THE  BOAT  FLY, 

(Notonecta  glanca.) 

Commonly  known  as  the  "Shoemaker"  is  a  most  voracious  insect  and 
very  destructive  of  young  fish.  The  following  description  of  it,  together 
with  the  descriptions  of  the  dragon  fly  and  its  larVa;  the  yellow  banded 
water  beetle  and  its  larva  and  the  black  water  beetle  are  all  taken  from 
Hugo  Murlertt's  excellent  work  on  Goldfish  and  its  Culture. 

The  body  of  the  boat  fly  is  long,  contracted  posteriorly,  convex  above 
and  flat  below,  having  hair  at  the  sides  and  extremeties,  which,  when 
spread  out,  supports  the  insect  upon  the  water.  The  head  is  large  and 
presents  a  large  eye  upon  each  side,  giving  the  possessor  the  power  of 
vision  in  all  directions.  The  color  of  the  body  is  a  greenish  grey,  the 
wings  are  white,  of  the  legs,  the  four  nearest  the  head  are  short,  but  the 
third  pair  are  very  long,  different  in  shape  from  the  others,  very  much 
resembling  boat  oars.  When  in  the  water,  the  insect  swims  upon  its  back, 
using  the  hind  legs  as  oars  for  propulsion,  while  the  front  ones  are  instru- 
mental in  seizing  its  prey.  Young  fish,  tad-poles,  and  other  insects,  all 
contribute  to  supply  it  with  food,  to  the  former,  especially,  it  is  a  very 


PRACTICAL  CARP  CULTURE. 


55 


dangerous  enemy.    The   instrument   or  weapon  with  which  the   insect 
makes  the  attack  upon  the  victim  is  a  strong,  conical  beak. 

It  is  believed  that  when  making  the  attack,  the  boat-fly  injects  poison 
into  the  wound  it  makes,  as  seems  to  be  proven  by  the  fact  that  when  once 


THE  BOAT  FLY. 


LARVA  OF  DRAGON  FLY. 


attacked,  though  subsequently  escaping,  the  victim  always  dies  in  a  short 
time.  When  upon  land,  this  fly  crawls  along,  in  an  upright  position, 
dragging  its  oars  behind  it.  In  the  evening,  and  at  night,  it  likes  to  leave 
the  water  and  make  excursions  to  other  ponds  or  creeks;  from  this  habit 
the  culturist  may  take  warning.  Its  eggs  are  deposited  against  the  stems 
of  aquatic  plants  in  the  early  spring,  and  again  in  mid-summer,  so  that 
one  season  produces  two  crops  of  them. 

The  young  make  their  appearance  soon  after^-immediately  following 
the  example  of  the  parents  by  swimming  upon  the  back  and  eating  almost 
anything  they  happen  to  meet.  The  accompanying  illustration  shows  the 
insect  as  seen  from  below  when  in  the  water. 

There  are  two  or  more  varieties  of  this  fly  that  differ  in  coloring,  and 
of  smaller  size  than  the  one  described,  though  all  are  extremely  destruc- 
tive to  the  young  fish — the  one  delineated,  more  especially. 

THE  YELLOW-BANDED  WATER  BEETLE. 

(Dytiscus  marginalis.) 


YELLOW-BANDED  BEETLE  AND  ITS  LARVA. 

This  rather  pretty  beetle,  lives  entirely  below  the  surface  of  the  water, 
never  leaving  it,  except  during  the  night  when  the  air  is  damp  or  in  rainy 


56  PRACTICAL   CARP    CULTURE. 

weather,  and  then  for  the  purpose  of  making  excursions  to  other  locali- 
ties. The  body  is  of  a  greenish  black  color,  encircled  with  a  brownish 
yellow  band— this  feature  giving  it  its  name.  When  taken  from  the 
water  it  exudes  a  milky  fluid  of  a  most  offensive  and  disgusting  odor. 
The  hind  legs  are  shaped  very  much  like  those  of  the  boat-fly,  and  serve 
the  same  purpose.  The  beetle  is  very  courageous,  attacking  fish  of  any 
size,  as  large  ones  have  been  caught,  into  whose  flesh  the  beetle  had  eaten 
large  holes,  the  beetle  itself  found  in  the  hole  hard  at  work  eating  up  the 
fish.  The  larva,  which  is  produced  twice  within  the  same  season,  lives 
and  grows  upon  tadpoles  and  young  fish. 

When  of  sufficient  size,  and  the  proper  time  has  arrived,  it  changes 
into  a  pupa,  which  in  turn,  becomes  the  perfect  beetle.  (See  illustration. 

THE   BLACK  WATER  BEETLE. 

(Hydrophyllus  piceus.) 

As  the  name  indicates,  this  beetle  is  black,  shining  with  a  rich,  purple 
lustre.  (See  illustration.)  It  is  of  larger  size  than  the  preceding,  and 
strong  in  proportion. 


THE  BLACK  WATER  BEETLE. 

The  beetle  itself  is  a  vegetarian,  and  as  such,  is  not  directly  dangerous 
to  the  fish,  its  larva,  however,  is  voracious  without  limit,  destroying  all 
that  comes  in  its  way. 

The  female  of  this  species  spins  a  white  cocoon  around  the  posterior 
portion  of  its  body,  with  the  aid  of  its  hind  legs,  the  cocoon,  when  com- 
pleted, being  the  size  of  a  hazel  nut.  In  this  it  deposits  its  eggs,  and  after 
closing  it  carefully,  fastens  it  to  a  floating  leaf,  adding  to  it  a  little  pro- 
jecting point  on  the  top,  which  by  the  way  resembles  a  small  mast,  retires 
to  the  water  underneath  and  mounts  guard.  After  a  few  days  the  young 
grubs  make  their  appearance,  at  first  resembling  little  whitish  worms,  but 
possessing  six  legs  near  the  yellow  head. 

It  is  by  the  motion  of  these  legs  that  the  grub  is  propelled  through  the 
water,  continually  on  the  search  for  something  to  eat.  When  at  rest  on  a 
water-plant,  the  head  with  its  fearful  apparatus,  formed  of  a  strong 
pincher  with  two  pair  of  adjuncts,  which  can  be  moved  in  any  direction, 
is  placed  in  such  a  deceiving  position  as  to  almost  always  lure  aa  unsus- 
pecting little  fish,  tadpole  or  insect,  within  its  reach. 


PRACTICAL  CARP  CULTURE.  57 

As  the  grub  gets  larger,  it  turns  darker  in  color,  until  having  attained 
a  size  of  about  four  inches  in  length,  it  has  become  nearly  bJack  on  the 
back ;  the  under  part  is  then  of  a  creamy  white,  and  the  sides  have  been 
fringed  with  hair.  In  this  state  its  appearance  is  extremely  repulsive* 
being  about  as  ugly  as  anything  can  be  imagined.  The  earliest  and  best 
time  to  destroy  them  is  when  the  cocoon  has  been  finished,  and  the 
female  is  standing  guard  in  the  water  beneath,  both  can  then  be  captured 
and  obliterated,  in  this  way  great  damage  is  prevented  before  there  has 
been  an  opportunity  for  development;  very  much  on  the  principle  of  the 
old  proverb:  "A  stitch  in  time  saves  nine." 

The  grubs  breathe  through  the  posterior  part  of  the  body,  and  have 
to  come  to  the  surface  occasionally  for  that  purpose,  at  which  time  they 
are  easily  caught  with  a  dip-net. 

In  general  appearance,  the  color  excepted,  the  grub  of  the  black 
water-beetle  resembles  that  of  the  preceding. 

The  beetle,  moreover,  is  very  prolific,  spinning  several  cocoons  at  two 
different  periods,  namely,  in  the  spring  and  high  summer. 

Other  varieties  of  this  insect  exist,  the  one  under  discussion  being 
the  most  dangerous  to  the  fish.  So  far  as  the  others  are  concerned,  it  is 
sufficient  to  remember  the  injunction,  allow  nothing  alive  to  remain  in 
the  company  of  the  fish  when  newly  hatched. 

•  THE  DRAGON  FLIES. 

The  dragon  flies  (commonly  known  as  snake-feeders)  may  be  divided 
into  three  classes,  all  very  destructive  enemies  of  the  fish. 


THE    DRAGON    FLY. 

1.  The  Libellula   possesses   a  short,  flat  body,  about  two  inches  in 
length.     (See  illustration.) 

2.  The  Aeshma  is  longer  than   the  above,  its  slender,  round   body 
sometimes  measuring  six  inches  in  length. 

3.  The  Agrion  is  not  large,  the  body  small  and  slender,  varying  in 
length  from  !>£  to  2^2  inches. 

d 


68  PBACTIOAL  OABP  CULTURE. 

The  wings  of  the  first  two  named,  are,  when  the  insect  is  at  rest, 
always  expanded  horizontally,  while  those  of  the  latter  are  folded  to- 
gether, pointing  backward. 

The  hind  part  of  the  body  in  all  of  them  is  long,  slender,  and  com- 
posed of  ten  rings.  On  the  forepart  of  the  body,  they  have  three  pairs  of 
legs,  and  two  pairs  of  transparent,  webbed  wings,  the  latter  in  some 
species  glitter  like  gold,  in  others  they  are  dotted  with  spots  of  different 
color;  in  the  Agrion  species  they  are  of  the  same  color  as  the  body.  The 
coloring  of  the  bodies  of  all,  especially  the  seshma,  is  very  brilliant,  being 
of  a  bright  green,  blue  or  scarlet,  and  sometimes  mottled  and  spotted 
with  various  colors. 

The  eyes  are  large  and  prominent,  giving  the  insects  a  very  large  field 
of  vision. 

They  all  fly  very  rapidly,  feed  upon  insects  of  every  description  that 
they  catch  flying  about,  and  from  this  fact  they  may  be  made  useful  to 
destroy  the  mosquitoes  in  bedrooms  and  elsewhere.  Although  very  vora- 
cious, they  are  perfectly  harmless  to  man — they  cannot  injure  him  in  any 
way.  The  manner  of  their  copulation  is  somewhat  curious.  The  male 
fastens  the  extreme  back  part  of  its  body  to  the  neck  of  the  female,  and 
thus  attached,  both  fly  about  for  one  or  two  hours,  when^  over  some 
water,  they  separate.  The  female  then  deposits  her  small  white  egjjs  by 
immersing  the  posterior  part  of  the  body  in  the  water,  attaching  them  too 
the  submerged  surfaces  of  water-plants;  there  they  remain  until  hatched 

The  larvae  or  grubs  of  the  dragon-flies  live  in  the  water ;  those  of  the 
libellula  are  short  and  thick,  while  those  of  the  other  genera  are  more 
slender,  corresponding  with  the  shape  of  the  adult.  The  color  of  these 
grubs  varies  from  blackish-brown  to  a  brilliant  green.  They  breathe 
through  the  posterior  part  of  the  body,  which  apparatus  is  also  used  to 
propel  them  forwards  through  the  water,  making  them  good  swimmers. 

They  are  extremely  destructive  to  young  fish  and  fish-eggs,  upon 
which,  together  with  tadpoles  and  snails,  they  manage  to  make  a  good 
living.  Instead  of  hunting  their  victims,  they  lay  concealed  in  the  mud 
with  the  eyes  only  protruding  from  the  surface.  Whenever  a  victim 
comes  within  reach,  they  produce  their  concealed  pincers  by  a  rapid 
motion,  rarely  missing  the  mark  they  aim  at.  (See  illustration.) 

There  are  instances  on  record  where  one  of  the  larvae  of  the  libellulse, 
which  was  overlooked  in  the  fish  tank,  destroyed  two  thousand  (2,000) 
young  fish  in  a  week's  time. 

After  they  have  attained  their  full  growth,  the  grubs  leave  the  water, 
climb  upon  some  object  projecting  from  it,  when  the  perfect  fly  makes 
Its  appearance  through  the  back  of  the  grub,  rising  upon  its  wings  into 
the  air  as  soon  as  they  are  unfolded  and  dry. 

The  eggs  are  also  produced  twice  in  a  season,  the  grubs  from  the  last 
deposit,  living  in  the  mud  during  the  winter,  and  produce  in  the  early 
spring  the  first  dragon  flies  of  the  season. 


PRACTICAL    CARP  CULTURE.  ,59 

Their  natural  enemies  are  the  frog  and  the  water-spider.  The  latter, 
small  as  it  is,  compared  with  their  own  size,  is,  nevertheless  a  powerful 
antagonist,  attacking  them  when  in  the  act  of  depositing  their  eggs.  The 
attack  is  made  directly  upon  the  eye,  the  largest  dragon-fly  thus  being 
easily  overpowered  by  its  small  but  intelligent  enemy. 

How  strange  it  is  that  just  those  animals  with  which  man  has  the 
least  sympathy  are  among  his  best  friends!  Such  are  the  toad  and  the 
spider!" 

AN  INTERESTING  ENEMY. 

Among  the*  strangest  and  most  interesting  enemies  of  the 
carp,  are  a  class  of  carnivorous  plants,  that  until  recent  years  were  not 
known  to  capture  any  other  animal  life  than  that  of  insects  and  the 
smaller  crustaceans.  Among  the  earliest  to  call  attention  to  the  fact  that 
a  specie  of  these  plants  captured  young  fish,  was  Hugo  Mulertt,  so  often 
quoted  in  this  work,  and  it  is  but  justice  to  call  attention  to  this  fact, 
while  we  give  the  description  and  illustration  of  an  other  taken  from  the 
Bulletin  of  the  United  States  Fish  Commission. 

PISCIVOROUS  PLANTS. 

By  E.  Halperine. 

"The  so-called  carnivorous  plants  for  some  years,  especially  since 
Charles  Darwin  made  his  interesting  researches,  have  attracted  the  atten- 
tion of  naturalists,  not  only  on  account  of  the  curious  phenomenon  itself, 
but  more  particularly  because  of  the  philosophical  conclusion  which  may 
be  drawn  from  it. 

It  is  known  that  the  ordinary  plants  draw  from  the  soil  by  means  of 
their  roots  the  nutritive  inorganic  elements  which  they  need,  and  absorb 
by  means  of  their  leaves  and  stems  the  carbonic  acid  of  the  atmosphere 
it  has  thus  been  said  that  the  plants  play  the  part  of  intermediate  work- 
ing agents,  transforming  inorganic  matter  into  organic  elements  such  as 
alone  can  serve  as  food  for  beings  belonging  to  the  animal  kingdom. 

Although  it  was  already  known  that  nitrogenous  manures  or  fertil- 
izers of  an  organic  nature  were  just  as  indispensable  for  the  formation  of 
plants,  botanists  were  nevertheless  surprised  to  learn  that  in  carnivorous 
plants  the  absorption  of  organic  elements  was  no  longer  going  on  as  usual 
by  means  of  their  roots  alone,  but  also  by  their  leaves,  which  are  more  or 
less  adapted  to  these  new  functions,  secreting  a  genuine  gastric  juice,  and 
transforming  organic  matter  by  a  chemical  process  identical  with  the 
digestion  of  animals. 

In  fact  all  the  experience,  and  the  facts  observed  by  Charles  Darwin 
and  his  son  Francis,  by  Hooker,  F.  Cohn,  Mrs.  Treat,  of  New  Jersey,  and 
many  other  naturalists,  prove  sufficiently  the  fact  of  animal  digestion  by 
the  leaves  in  these  plants,  particularly  in  Dioncea  muscipula,  and  in  dif- 
ferent kinds  of  the  Rossolis  or  Drosera.  Many  other  plants,  like  the 
Aldrovanda,  Drosophyllum,  the  Pinguicula,  and  the  Utricularia,  of 
which  we  shall  have  to  speak  specially,  have  also  been  mentioned  as  car- 
nivorous plants.  Professor  Hooker  adds  the  Nepenthes,  and  Drs.  Melli- 


60 


PRACTICAL   CARP   CULTURE. 


UTRICULAJIIA  VULGARIS  (Bladderwort.) 


PRACTICAL  CARP  CULTURE.  61 

champ  and  Cauby  also  class  among  them  the  Sarracenia  and  the  Dar- 
lingtonia.  It  should  be  observed,  however,  that  these  last  two  kinds,  as 
well  as  the  Utricularia,  cannot,  properly  speaking,  digest  nitrogenous 
matter.  They  simply  absorb  the  products  of  the  decomposition  of  the 
animals  which  they  capture  by  means  of  their  bladders,  which  constitute 
genuine  traps,  acting  like  mouse-traps  when  in  the  air,  and  like  fish-traps 
when  in  the  water  or  in  a  very  humid  soil. 

As  regards  other  carnivorous  plants,  nothing  is  wanting  to  make  the 
analogy  of  their  digestion  with  that  of  animals  complete.  There  is  the 
preparatory  act,  the  capture  of  the  living  prey,  and  the  essential  act  char- 
acterizing digestion,  namely,  the  dissolution  of  an  acid,  and  of  a  special 
juice  over  food  of  a  proteinous  nature;  that  is,  food  that  among  its  com- 
ponent parts  contains  nitrogen.  Numerous  experiments  made  by  many 
botanists,  especially  those  made  by  Francis  Darwin,  have  clearly  shown, 
in  spite  of  the  doubts  expressed  by  other  naturalists,  that  animal  matter, 
absorbed  in  the  manner  described,  enters  directly  into  the  composition  of 
these  plants,  and  is  exceedingly  useful  if  not  indispensable  to  their  nor- 
mal development. 

Among  the  victims  commonly  found  in  the  traps  of  carnivorous 
plants,  as  far  as  known  till  quite  recently,  there  were  only  insects  and 
umall  crustaceans.  But  a  short  time  ago  Mr.  Siinms,  of  Oxford,  brought 
to  Professor  Moseley  a  vessel  containing  a  specimen  of  Utricularia  vul- 
garis  (Plate  1),  and  a  number  of  small  Leuciscus  rutilus,  recently  hatched. 
Many  of  these  small  fish  were  dead,  and  were  held  firmly  between  the 
valves  of  the  bladders  of  this  voracious  plant.  The  English  professor, 
being  interested  in  this  remarkable  discovery,  procured  another  specimen 
of  the  Utricularia  and  a  supply  of  eggs  and  young  of  the  Leuciscus  ru- 
tilus.  Six  hours  later  he  noticed  that  more  than  a  dozen  of  the  young  fish 
had  been  seized  by  the  plant.  In  most  cases  the  fish  are  seized  by  the 
head  (Plate  2,  Fig.  1),  and  sometimes  by  the  tail  (Plate  2,  Fig.  2).  One  of 
the  little  fish  has  even  been  seized  by  the  belly,  and  another  by  its  two 
extremities  by  two  bladders  at  a  time  (Plate  2,  Fig.  3).  These  last  men- 
tioned facts  seem  to  confirm  the  opinion  of  Mrs.  Treat  that  the  carnivor- 
ous plants  seize  the  animal  of  their  own  accord,  and  from  this  opinion 
she  draws  the  conclusion  that  there  actually  exists  in  these  plants  a  ehar- 
teristic  nervous  tissue.  But  numerous  experiments  made  by  Charles 
Darwin  with  one  of  these  plants,  the  Drosera,  by  applying  to  it  acids, 
alkalies,  and  alkaloids,  of  various  mineral  or  organic  salts,  show  too  great 
a  diversity  in  their  results  to  allow  us  to  draw  therefrom  any  definite 
conclusion.  Mr.  Planchon  says  with  regard  to  this  subject:  'The  physi- 
ological equivalent  of  nerves  is  perhaps  found  in  some  of  the  elements 
constituting  the  tissue  or  the  cellular  contents  of  plants,  which  cannot  be 
denied  a  priori:  but  sensibility,  properly  so-called,  presupposes  a  percep- 
tion of  pleasure  or  pain,  which,  without  further  proof,  cannot  be  attri- 
buted to  the  most  excitable  plant.' 

"However  this  may  be,  once  seized,  the  victim  cannot  escape  from 
the  jaws  of  the  voracious  plant.  The  numerous  glandular  thorns  (or 


PRACTICAL  CARP  CULTURE. 


PLATE  2 

DETAILS  OF  THE  MODE  OF  CAPTURE  OF  A  FISH  BY  THE  UTRICULARIA 

VULGARIS. 


PRACTICAL  CARP  CULTURE.  68 

"processes,"  as  Darwin  calls  them)  which  are  found  on  the  inside  of  the 
bladder,  and  protrude  obliquely  and  in  the  back  (see  Plate  2,  Fig.  5),  re- 
sembling the  barbs  of  a  hook,  prevent  the  prey  from  escaping,  and  by 
every  movement  entangle  it  still  more  in  this  trap.  After  having  been 
swallowed  completely  the  animal  begins  to  decompose,  assumes  a  viscous 
appearance,  and  is  rapidly  absorbed  by  the  same  glandular  thorns  which 
have  in  the  beginning  aided  in  the  capture  of  the  little  fish.  This  is  at 
least  the  supposition  at  present  entertained  by  most  botanists.  Mrs. 
Treat,  however,  thought  she  could  see  in  the  bladder  of  the  Utricularia  a 
stomach,  digesting  in  the  same  manner  as  in  the  Drosera;  but  Darwin 
entertains  grave  doubts  as  to  the  correctness  of  this  opinion,  for  he  has 
observed  flesh  and  hardened  portions  of  the  white  of  an  egg  remain  for 
three  days  in  the  space  where  the  little  animals  died,  without  undergoing 
any  change.  He  is  rather  inclined  to  think  that  they  died  of  asphyxia, 
after  having  entirely  consumed  the  oxygen  of  the  water  in  the  bladder, 
He  admits,  however,  that  some  special  juice  may  accelerate  the  decompo- 
sition of  the  dead  fish,  in  the  same  manner  as  the  juice  of  the  papaw- 
tree,  well  known  in  the  tropical  regions,  at  first  softens  and  afterwards 
rapidly  decomposes  meat  exposed  to  its  action.  Planchon  says,  "We 
have  here  reached  the  vague  line  where  different  modes  of  nutrition  seem 
to  combine  and  intermingle."  Whatever  the  process  may  be,  when  it  is 
once  changed  the  animal  matter  enters  definitely  into  the  composition  of 
the  carnivorous  plant. 

The  beautiful  Utricularia,  whose  handsome  yellow  flowers  form  an 
ornament  of  ponds,  both  in  the  Old  and  the  New  World,  is  therefore  a 
genuine  piscivorous  plant.  But  curious  and  interesting  as  the  discovery 
of  this  new  phenomenon  in  plant  life  may  appear  at  first  sight,  it  is  in 
reality  only  a  special  illustration  of  a  general  law,  a  necessary  adaptation 
to  the  conditions  of  the  element  in  which  the  plant  lives. 

In  all  the  so-called  carnivorous  plants  the  roots,  according  to  the  ob- 
servations of  Darwin,  are  very  little  developed,  and  scarcely  suffice  to 
draw  into  the  plant  the  water  and  the  salts  found  in  it  in  a  dissolved  con- 
dition. It  is  therefore  quite  natural  that  these  plants  should  endeavor  to 
obtain  by  some  other  process  the  nitrogen  which  is  necessary  for  their 
life,  and  that  their  leaves  should  aid  in  performing  the  functions  which 
their  roots  cannot  entirely  fulfill.  In  reality  we  must  say,  with  Van 
Tieghem,  that  all  plants  are  carnivorous,  and  we  add  that  it  cannot  be 
otherwise,  for  how  could  we  in  any  other  way  explain  the  various  trans- 
formations and  the  infinite  changes  of  matter  which  constitute  the  mar- 
velous equilibrium  of  nature." 

Another  very  interesting  description  of  and  experience  with  this 
same  plant  is  given  in  the  following  article  taken  from  the  Fishing  Ga- 
zette, May  31,  1884: 

A  FISH-EATING  PLANT, 

By.  G.  E.  Simms,  Jr. 
"  I  have  recently  discovered  amongst  the  aquatic  weeds  placed  in  my 


64  PRACTICAL   CARP   CULTURE. 

aquarium,  where  I  have  also  a  large  number  of  newly-hatched  perch  and 
roach,  a  novel  and  unexpected  enemy  to  the  pisciculturist  in  the  bladder 
traps  of  Utricularia  vulgaris,  which  is  capable  of  catching  and  killing 
young  fry. 

1  My  attention  was  first  drawn  to  it  by  observing  that  several  of  the 
tiny  fish,  without  any  apparent  cause,  were  lying  dead  on  the  weeds, 
while  the  rest  of  the  brood  looked  perfectly  healthy  and  in  good  condi- 
tion. At  first  I  was  somewhat  puzzled  at  the  strange  position  in  which 
they  were  lying,  and  in  trying  to  move  one  with  a  small  twig  I  was  still 
more  surprised  to  find  it  was  held  fast  by  the  head,  in  what  I  thought 
when  I  pulled  the  plant  from  the  water,  were  the  seed  vessels ;  and  a  still, 
closer  examination  revealed  the  strange  fact  that  others  of  the  little  fish 
had  been  trapped  by  the  tail,  and  in  one  or  two  instances  the  head  and 
tail  of  the  same  fish  had  been  swallowed  by  adjacent  bladders,  thus  form- 
ing with  its  body  a  connecting  bar  between  the  two. 

At  first  I  was  undecided  how  to  act,  for  I  could  bring  to  memory  no 
instance  in  which  I  had  seen  the  existence  of  a  piscivorous  plant — /.  e., 
one  preying  on  vertebrates — recorded  in  any  book  I  had  ever  read,  and  1 
was  unwilling  to  make  an  assertion  without  the  opinion  of  some  one 
better  capable  of  forming  a  judgment  on  the  subject  than  myself ;  so  I 
placed  one  or  two  good  specimens  in  a  glass  jar  and  went  to  the  Museum, 
where  I  was  fortunate  enough  to  see  professor  Moseley,  who  immediately 
verified  my  suspicions. 

According  to  Bentham's  Handbook  of  British  Flowering  Plants,  the 
Utricularia  vulgaris,  or  greater  bladder  wort,  is  widely  distributed  over 
Britain,  and  although  it  is  local,  yet  where  it  is  found  it  grows  luxuri- 
antly, seldom  appearing  in  the  rivers,  but  chiefly  confining  its  presence 
to  still  ponds  and  deep  ditches,  the  places  where  it  is  most  likely  to  work 
mischief  to  the  young  fry.  A  peculiar  fact  in  connection  with  it  is  that 
it  has  no  roots  at  any  time  of  its  life,  and  the  floating,  root-like  branches 
which  are  covered  with  numerous  capillary  and  much  divided  leaves  are 
interspersed  with  tiny  green  vesicles,  which  were  supposed  by  a  former 
school  of  botanists  to  be  filled  with  water,  by  which  means  the  plant  was 
kept  at  the  bottom  until  the  time  of  flowering,  when  the  water  gave  place 
to  air,  and  the  plant  then  rose  to  the  surface  to  allow  its  bloom  to  expand. 

As  a  matter  of  fact,  the  vesicles  exercised  no  such  function,  their  real 
work  being  to  entrap  minute  crustaceans,  worms,  larvae,  &c.,  for  its  sup- 
port, and  without  a  good  supply  of  which  it  is  impossible  to  keep  it  alive 
in  an  aquarium. 

This  form  is  that  of  a  flattened  ovoid  sac,  or,  in  other  words,  when 
seen  under  a  low-power  microscope,  they  are  precisely  like  a  human 
stomach,  and  they  are  attached  to  their  hinder  extremities  each  by  a 
very  short  and  fine  pedicle  or  foot-stalk  in  the  axle  of  the  leaves. 

Each,  too,  has  an  opening  at  the  opposite  free  extremity,  somewhat 
quadrangular  in  outline,  from  either  side  of  which  project  two  branched 
processes,  called  by  Mr.  Darwin  antennae. 


PRACTICAL  CARP  CULTURE.  06 

In  fact,  I  do  not  suppose  they  could  have  received  a  more  appropriate 
name,  because  in  appearance  the  whole  bladder  intimately  resembles  an 
entomostracon  crustacean,  the  short  foot-stalk  representing  the  tail. 

On  either  side  of  the  quadrangular  entrance  several  long  bristles  pro- 
ject outwards,  and  these  bristles,  together  with  the  branches  of  the  an- 
tennas, form  a  sort  of  hollow  cone  surrounding  the  entrance,  and  there 
cannot  be  the  slightest  doubt  that  they  act  as  a  guide  for  the  prey. 

The  entrance  is  closed  by  a  valve,  which  being  attached  above  slopes 
into  the  cavity  of  the  bladder,  and  is  attached  to  it  on  all  sides  except  at 
its  posterior  or  lower  margin,  which  is  free,  and  forms  one  side  of  the 
slit-like  opening  leading  into  the  bladder. 

Differing  materially  from  the  color  of  the  bladder  itself,  which  is  of 
a  brilliant  green,  the  valve  is  colorless  and  transparent,  and  is  extremely 
flexible  and  elastic. 

Animals  enter  the  bladder  by  bending  inwards  the  posterior  free  edge 
of  the  valve,  which,  from  being  highly  elastic,  shuts  again  immediately. 

The  edge  is  extremely  thin  and  fits  closely  against  the  edge  of  the 
collar,  both  projecting  into  the  bladder,  and  it  is  extremely  difficult,  if 
not  impossible,  for  any  animal  to  escape,  although  I  have  observed  a 
long  worm  do  so  at  the  expense  of  a  part  of  its  body ;  yet,  as  a  rule,  it  is 
a  case  of  "all  who  eiiter  here  lose  hope." 

To  show  how  closely  the  edge  fits,  it  was  found  that  a  daphnia,  which 
had  inserted  its  antennae  into  the  slit,  was  held  fast  a  whole  day,  and  on 
other  occasions  long,  narrow  larvae,  both  dead  and  alive,  were  seen 
wedged  between  the  valve  and  the  collar  with  their  bodies  half  in  and 
half  out  the  vesicle. 

When  a  fish  is  caught,  the  head  is  usually  pushed  as  far  into  the 
bladder  as  possible  till  the  snout  touches  the  hinder  wall.  The  two  black 
eyes  of  the  fish  then  show  out  conspicuously  through  the  wall  of  the 

bladder. 

So  far  as  known  there  is  no  digestive  process  in  Utricularia  neither 
is  there  any  sensibility  to  irritation.  Mr.  Darwin  Was  unable  to  detect 
either,  his  opinion  being  that  whatever  nutriment  the  plant  obtained 
from  its  prey  was  by  absorption  of  the  decaying  matter,  and  it  would  ap- 
pear that  the  longer  of  the  two  pair  of  projections  composing  the  quad- 
rind  processes  by  which  the  vesicles  are  lined,  which  project  obliquely 
inwards  and  towards  the  end  of  the  bladder,  acts,  together  with  the 
spring  valves  at  the  mouth  of  the  bladder,  in  utilizing  each  fresh  struggle 
of  the  captive  for  the  purpose  of  pushing  it  further  inwards.  If  any  of 
my  readers  wiah  for  specimens  of  this  interesting  plant  I  shall  be  enabled 
in  a  few  days  to  forward  them  at  a  very  nominal  cost. 

Of  its  destructive  powers  all  I  can  say  is.  that  out  of  150  newly- 
hatched  perch  placed  in  a  glass  vessel  only  one  or  two  were  alive  two 
days  subsequently." 

We  have  given  this  much  space  to  this  plant  not  only  because  of  the 
novel  and  interesting  character  that  these  discoveries  give  it,  but  because 
it  thrives  in  a  large  range  of  our  country,  including  the  North  and  West, 


06  PRACTICAL    CARP  CULTURE. 

and  as  these  articles  demonstrate  is  capable  of  great  havoc  in  ponds  where 
young  fish  are  raised,  and  in  any  pond  it  lives  on  that  which  properly 
belongs  to  the  fish,  and  should  therefore  find  a  home  in  no  fish  pond. 

HOW  TO  GET  RID  OF  THE  ENEMIES. 

We  have  pointed  out  the  means  of  destroying  many  of  them,  and 
while  the  ponds  are  full  of  water  it  is  impossible  to  get  at  the  others, 
such  as  foreign  fish,  etc.  But  when  the  water  is  turned  off  of  the  ponds 
and  the  bottoms  lie  exposed  you  have  them  at  your  mercy.  For  thia 
reason  it  is  well  to  draw  the  ponds  twice  a  year,  spring  and  fall,  where 
the  water  supply  is  good  and  they  can  readily  be  refilled,  otherwise,  as 
we  have  before  said,  draw  them  but  once  a  year  and  that  in  the  fall  when 
you  will  have  the  winter  months  in  which  to  fill  them.  To  destroy  the 
enemies,  when  the  ponds  are  empty  take  quicklime  and  scatter  in  such 
portions  of  the  bottom  as  is  likely  to  conceal  those  enemies.  Use  enough 
of  it  to  destroy  all  remaining  animal  life.  Let  the  pond  stand  empty  for 
about  one  week.  When  the  water  is  again  turned  on  let  it  stand  a  few 
days  before  putting  in  the  carp.  The  lime  will  serve  a  three-fold  pur- 
pose. First,  it  will  destroy  the  animal  life  with  which  it  comes  in  con- 
tact. Second,  and  we  believe,  almost  equally  important,  by  sweetening 
the  bottom  of  the  pond,  it  will  neutralize  the  poisonous  gases,  and  in 
part  destroy  such  animal  and  vegetable  matter  as  generates  these  gases. 
If  not  entirely  successful  in  this  latter  purpose,  we  are  confident  that  it 
will  contribute  greatly  to  the  aid  of  the  other  agencies  employed.  Third, 
it  will  act  as  a  fertilizer,  and  make  the  pond  more  prolific  in  vegetable 
growth,  which  in  turn  will  furnish  food  for  the  carp. 


ERRATUM. 

By  an  accident,  the  cut  on  page  54,  was  run  through  a  part  of  the  edition  upside  down. 
This  was  serious  only  in  the  fact  that  it  made  a  water  flea  out  of  the  water  asell.  The  cut 
should  have  been  thus:— 


THE  WATER  FLEA  (enlarged.)  THE  WATER  ASELL  (enlarged.) 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

THE  DISEASES  OF  THE  CARP  AND  ALLIED  DIFFICULTIES  IN  POND  CULTURE. 

The  cold-blooded,  like  the  warm-blooded,  animals  are  subject  to  dis- 
ease. In  most  cases  it  is  the  result  of  bad  treatment  somewhere,  or  acci- 
dent at  some  time.  In  discovering  and  treating  their  ailments,  we  labor 
under  the  disadvantage  of  not  having  them  under  our  eye  to  study  their 
case  and  the  effect  of  treatment  upon  it. 

The  indications  of  disease  are  found  in  the  bearing  and  general  ap- 
pearance of  the  fish.  In  health  the  body  is  clean,  the  fins  are  clear,  and 
move  with  ease  and  grace,  while  the  gills  which  supply  the  blood  with 
oxygen  are  a  deep  bright  red.  In  disease  the  contrary  is  the  case ;  the 
body  is  coated,  or  has  protuberances  of  false  growths  on  portions  of  it,  the 
fins  droop,  hang  close  to  the  body,  do  not  spread  out  well,  and  appear  as 
if  held  together,  and  occasionally  bloody  streaks  appear  along  the  belly  of 
the  fish.  These  characteristics  of  health  and  disease  are  not  infallible, 
but  will  serve  the  purpose  of  a  rule. 

FUNGUS  GROWTH. 

This  is  most  frequently  found  in  its  early  stages  at  the  back  of  the 
head,  unless  some  other  part  of  the  body  has  been  wounded,  when  it  may 
begin  at  the  wounded  point.  It  resembles  proud  flesh,  and  if  allowed  to 
develop  a  coating  of  white  matter  like  slime  spreads  over  the  body  of  the 
fish.  It  may  be  caused,  too,  by  impurity  of  the  water.  In  this  latter  case 
it  will  generally  be  found  in  ponds  without  much  vegetation.  As  plant 
life  contributes  to  insect  life,  which  cleanse  the  water  of  the  bacteriae,  of 
which  the  fungus  growth  is  composed,  unless,  as  is  most  frequently  the 
case,  the  disease  appears  in  cold  weather,  which  arises  from  the  same 
cause,  lack  of  purifying  insect  life  in  the  water. 

Examined  under  a  microscope  it  shows  numberless  small  parasites 
that  are  preying  upon  and  irritating  the  fish.  Prevention  is  the  best  remedy 
and  the  only  one  that  we  have  yet  seen  prescribed  by  any  author.  But 
this  is  small  consolation  where  the  disease  is  present.  By  analogy  with 
similar  afflictions  in  the  human  family,  diphtheria,  for  instance,  which  is 
a  dread  parasitical  growth;  we  make  the  following  prescription,  which, 
by  the  way,  is  one  of  the  best  specifics  ever  used  for  diphtheria,  and 
which,  if  you  will  bear  it  in  mind,  may  save  the  life  of  some  one  dear  to 
you,  though  you  found  it  in  a  fish  book.  For  diphtheria  give  the  patient 
small  and  frequent  doses  of  alcohol  and  water  in  equal  parts.  For  the 
disease  in  fish,  wash  the  affected  parts  with  salt  water,  then  apply  the 
mixture  of  equal  parts  of  alcohol  and  water.  Another  remedy  is  sulphur 
applied  to  the  affected  parts.  We  have  full  confidence  in  the  efficacy  of 


68  PRACTICAL  CARP  CULTURE. 

this  treatment,  if  continued  once  a  day  for  a  few  days,  keeping  the  carp 
out  of  water  for  a  few  minutes,  giving  either  treatment  time  to  have  an 
effect. 

POLYP 

Is  a  disease  similar  in  character  to  the  former.  The  body  of  this  parasyte 
is  cylindrical,  with  the  mouth,  at  one  extremity,  surrounded  by  one  or  a 
aeries  of  arms,  or  tentacles,  it  not  only  multiplies  in  the  usual  way  by 
ova,  but  by  buds  and  sections  as  well.  The  Hydra  Polyp  has  several 
heads  from  one  body,  and  like  the  fabled  serpent  of  mythology,  one  head 
taken  off  another  will  grow,  with  chances  that  the  decapitated  head  will 
form  another  body  of  its  own.  Examined  by  the  naked  eye  the  affected 
parts  look  as  if  covered  with  a  gelatinous  matter.  The  remedies  for  this 
disease  are  the  uanie  as  those  given  above 

ASPHYXIA. 

The  characteristics  of  this  disease  is  general  weakness  and  lack  of 
appetite,  and  is  the  result  of  sudden  changes  of  temperature,  or  poisonous 
gases  in  the  pond.  Change  of  water  is  the  best  remedy. 

DROPSY 

In  its  early  stages,  is  a  swelling  of  the  body  at  any  part  which  gradually 
extends  over  the  entire  body  until  it  becomes  almost  spherical.  It  does 
not  affect  the  appetite  and  is  no  respecter  of  season  or  age.  It  runs  its 
course  in  from  three  to  six  months  and  is  generally  fatal.  We  know  of 
no  remedy  but  change  of  water. 

Other  diseases,  no  doubt,  attack  the  carp,  but  those  named  are  the 
principal  ones.  Time  and  experience  may  show  the  seriousness  of  others. 

INJURIES. 

In  the  frequent  handling  of  carp,  in  the  changes  from  one  pond  to 
another,  and  in  the  shipping  of  them,  accidents  are  almost  unavoidable, 
eyes  are  put  out,  scales  knocked  off,  fins  and  tails  injured,  &c.  If  the  water 
of  the  pond  is  in  good  healthy  condition  nature  will  do  much  in  healing 
the  eye,  and  in  reproducing  the  scales,  and  patching  up  the  fins  and  tails. 

HOSPITAL  POND. 

Where  many  fish  are  affected,  injured  or  sick,  a  small  hospital  pond 
will  make  them  accessible,  render  their  treatment  easier,  and  enhance 
the  chances  of  ultimate  recovery.  Such  a  pond  should  have  an  average 
depth  of  about  12  inches  and  a  temperature  of  from  70  to  80  degrees  Fah- 
renheit, maintained,  if  possible.  The  water  should  be  slightly  saltish ; 
this  can  be  accomplished  by  making  brine  and  pouring  into  it.  There  are 
few  diseases  of  fish  to  which  salt  water  will  not  contribute  in  affecting  a 
cure. 

POND  DIFFICULTIES  IN  SUMMER. 

The  great  majority  of  difficulties  that  have  been  reported  to  us  during 


PRACTICAL  CARP  CULTURE.  69 

the  past  three  years,  as  befalling  the  ponds  and   fish  during  the  warm 
season,  may  be  grouped  under  the  one  head, 

LACK  OF  WATER  SUPPLY. 

These  reports  were  generally  of  sky  ponds,  dependent  on  the  rainfall 
for  water.  Long  continued  drouths,  demands  made  on  the  water  by 
stock,  etc.,  would  reduce  the  pond  to  a  mere  pool,  of  a  few  rods  in  area, 
with  an  average  depth  of  only  a  few  inches,  and  literally  swarming  with 
tish.  They  described  the  fish  as  coming  open-mouthed  to  the  surface, 
and  numbers  of  them  dying,  asked  what  was  the  matter,  and  how  to 
remedy  it.  History  is  a  repetition.  The  past  repeats  itself.  So  that  this 
matter  is  worthy  of  consideration  here,  to  guard  others  against  the  afflic- 
tion, help  them  to  remedy  it,  if  it  comes. 

This  condition  of  things  will  rarely  come  to  pass  in  any  other  than 
sky  ponds,  except  in  long  continued  drouths  when  supplying  streams  dry 
up.  In  either  case  the  remedy  is  the  same. 

What  caused  the  fish  to  come  open-mouthed  to  the  surface?  Lack  of 
oxygen  in  the  water  is  the  natural  answer,  and  under  ordinary  circum- 
stances would  be  correct.  But  if  correct  in  these  instances,  the  mortali- 
ty in  many  places  would  have  been  much  greater,  as  efforts  of  relief  and 
fresh  water  did  not  come  soon  enough  to  stay  death,  if  lack  of  oxygen 
were  the  cause.  Unfortunately  no  trials  of  the  temperature  of  the  water 
were  made  in  those  days.  It  is  to  be  remembered,  however,  that  during 
the  period  of  the  lessening  of  the  water  surface,  and  while  the  quarters  of 
the  fish  grew  more  and  more  confined,  and  the  absorption  of  oxygen  by 
the  water  less  and  less,  that  the  water  became  more  and  more  foul, 
through  the  excrements  of  the  fish,  etc.  This  condition  itself  would 
breed  disease  in  the  fish.  Then  the  pool  at  its  lowest,  a  few  inches  of 
water,  parched  and  baked  surroundings  and  a  scorching  sun  pouring  its 
rays  down  upon  it,  and  you  get  a  temperature  of  water  ranging  from  85  to 
5)5  degrees.  And  here,  in  our  opinion,  was  the  great  cause  of  the  fish 
Doming  to  the  surface  of  the  water.  It  was  in  a  vain  search  for  that  they 
could  not  find:  a  cool  place,  a  lower  temperature.  In  support  of  this 
theory  we  have  the  testimony  of  many  who  put  water  fresh  from  the  well 
into  their  ponds,  with  the  sole  purpose  of  supplying  fresh  water,  but  it 
would  likewise  result  in  a  change  of  temperature.  Wm.  Todd,  of  Vermil- 
lion,  Ohio,  writing  of  such  an  experience,  said  that  after  putting  in  the 
cold  water  the  fish  settled  down,  and  by  its  repetition  for  a  few  days  he 
saved  his  tish  and  was  satisfied  that  it  was  by  this  means  only. 

In  similar  cases  it  can  be  quickly  demonstrated  whether  it  is  the  lack 
of  oxygen  or  heat  that  produces  the  result,  by  getting  the  mean  tempera- 
ture of  the  water,  with  a  thermometer.  If  it  is  above  88  degrees  Fahren- 
heit, heat  is  causing  it,  as  the  carp  will  die  in  water  of  91  degrees  or 
higher.  If  the  mean  temperature  is  less  than  88  degrees,  it  is  foul  water  or 
lack  ©f  oxygen.  In  the  latter  case  a  thorough  combing  back  and  forth  of 
the  water  with  a  wooden-toothed  hay  rake,  or  a  thorough  whipping  of  it 
with  a  wire  dip  net,  will  break  it  up,  make  it  foam  and  introduce  oxygen 


70  PRACTICAL  CARP  CULTURE. 

into  it.  In  either  of  the  former  cases  the  only  hope  is  in  the  introduction 
of  cold  water. 

The  preventative  of  such  a  catastrophe  lies  in  making  the  pond 
deeper  in  all  its  parts.  This  can  be  easiest  accomplished  by  excavating 
the  shallow  places  and  placing  the  material  taken  out,  on  the  dam  and 
embankments,  making  every  scraperful  count  double  in  the  water  hold- 
ing capacity  of  the  pond. 

Where  the  pond  is  so  situated  as  to  make  it  practicable,  the  over- 
flow of  a  cattle  trough,  supplied  by  a  windmill,  conducted  in  pipes  to  the 
pond,  will  supplement  the  rainfall  and  reinforce  the  pond  against  the 
work  of  absorption  and  evaporation,  which  agregates  every  24  hours 
about  6,000  gals,  to  every  acre. 

WINTER   DIFFICULTIES 

Consist  chiefly  in  the  death  of  fish  under  the  ice.  In  our  opinion  two 
causes  contribute  to  this  effect :  Shallow  water  and  poisonous  gases. 

THE  DEPTH  OF  WATER. 

This  must  be  governed  by  the  latitude  in  which  the  pond  is  located: 
the  climate  having  much  to  do  with  the  depth  of  water  required.  In 
Texas  the  deep  water  is  needed  in  the  hot  season,  that  the  fish  may  have 
cool  water  to  retreat  too.  In  Minnesota  they  need  deep  water  in  winter 
to  have  a  warm  place  to  retreat  too.  We  have  received  accounts  of  carp 
wintering  successfully  in  water  3  feet  deep  and  the  ice  from  20  to  24 
inches  thick,  leaving  only  12  to  16  inches  of  water.  Now  this  is  evidence 
only  of  the  hardihood  of  the  carp  and  not  of  the  skill  of  the  culturist ;  and 
the  carp  are  not  the  better  for  such  a  wintering.  In  a  climate  where  ice 
forms  from  20  to  24  inches  thick,  the  wintering  part  of  the  pond,  the  col- 
lector and  ditches,  should  not  be  less  than  8  feet  deep ;  in  warm  climates, 
4  to  6  feet  deep.  To  winter  carp  well,  keep  them  as  warm  as  possible. 

POISONOUS  GASES. 

Enough  has  been  said  and  written  on  the  subject  of  keeping  air  holes 
in  the  ice  for  carp  during  the  winter,  to  fill  several  books  and  to  confuse 
the  authors  themselves,  let  alone  their  readers.  It  has  been  argued  that 
these  holes  were  neccessary  for  the  introduction  of  oxygen  into  the 
pond.  Where  it  is  cold  enough  to  form  ice  on  ponds  that  lasts  any  con- 
siderable length  of  time,  the  carp  will  need  but  very  little  oxygen,  and  to 
cut  holes  in  the  ice  for  this  purpose  is  the  heighth  of  folly. 

The  decomposition  of  vegetable  matter,  animal  matter,  the  food 
unconsumed  by  the  carp,  all  generate  gases  that  are  poisonous.  These 
gases  will  be  found  most  plentiful  in  new  ponds,  formed  by  embank- 
ments, not  by  excavation.  Such  ponds  are  usually  formed  with  swales, 
or  morasses  for  their  bottoms,  and  these  bottoms  contain  a  mass  of 
vegetable  matter  that  has  been  for  years  in  gathering,  and  as  it  decom- 
poses gives  off  these  gases.  The  gases  arising  from  either  of  the  above 
sources,  are  injurious  to  the  fish,  and  if  they  are  long  subjected  to  them, 
results  in  asphyxia  and  death.  The  holes  cut  in  the  ice  are  to  allow  the 


PBACTIOAL  CARP  CULTURE.  71 

escape  of  these  gases  rather  than  the  introduction  of  oxygen. 

As  the  ponds  grow  older  this  difficulty  will  disappear,  as  the  mass  of 
vegetable  matter,  almost  inseparable  from  new  ponds,  exhausts  itself  by 
decomposition,  and  is  removed  from  the  ponds  after  the  fall  fishing.  To 
tide  over  this  time  many  devices,  are  resorted  to,  the  best  of  which  is,  we 
believe,  to  drive  stakes  firmly  in  several  places  in  the  pond,  then  bind 
cornstocks  or  rye  straw  closely  around  them  to  a  diameter  of  between  3 
and  4  feet,  and  projecting  above  the  water  about  2  feet.  If  the  water  is 
deep,  the  cornstocks  or  straw  may  be  bound  %  the  way  to  the  top  and 
slipped  over  the  stake,  then  loosely  bound  below  and  above. 

The  cutting  of  holes  in  the  ice,  we  believe  to  be  the  poorest  plan  of  all, 
as  the  water  quickly  congeals  again  and  the  temperature  of  the  pond  is 
reduced. 

A  plan  much  commended,  though  we  can  see  but  little  virtue  in  it,  is 
to  build  a  flume  from  a  point  under  water,  below  where  the  water  will 
congeal  too,  into  the  most  abrupt  bank  of  the  pond,  far  enough  so  that 
a  second  flume  at  right  angle  to  the  first  will  stand  perpendicular  to  the 
water,  and  come  up  through  the  earth  where  it  is  high  enough  above  the 
water  level  to  prevent  freezing.  The  top  of  the  flume  then  is  left  open, 
and  allows  the  gas  to  escape,  and  the  oxygen  to  enter  the  pond.  The  dif- 
ficulty with  this  plan  is  that  the  pressure  of  the  gas  is  upward,  and  it  will 
lay  heaviest  next  to  the  ice,  and  it  will  pass  out  of  the  flume  only  when 
enough  has  accumulated  to  thoroughly  saturate  the  water  above  the 
flume  and  between  it  and  the  ice.  When  this  condition  is  reached  the 
gas  next  to  the  flume  will  begin  to  pass  out  of  the  flume.  But  we  do  not 
see  that  the  flume  is  going  to  have  any  great  draft  on  the  gas  from  other 
parts  of  the  pond,  than  just  at  the  mouth  of  the  flume.  As  an  oxygen 
introducer,  we  have  as  little  faith  in  the  flume  as  we  have  in  it  for  a  gas 
escape.  The  reason  is  that  the  surface  of  the  water  exposed  to  the 
oxygen  in  the  land  end  of  the  flume  is  too  insignificant  when  compared 
with  the  area  of  the  pond,  and  again,  being  under  the  earth,  down  a 
chimney,  the  oxygen  has  but  poor  opportunity  to  enter  the  water.  We 
would  rather  put  our  faith  in  the  rye  straw  and  cornstock  plan,  with  the 
proper  cleaning  and  liming  of  the  pond  bottoms  (see  page  66)  in  the 
fall,  where  they  cannot  lie  exposed  during  the  winter. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

THE    ARTIFICIAL  FEEDING  OF  CARP. 

It  is  not  the  purpose  of  this  chapter  to  either  establish  a  standard  of 
food  for  the  carp,  or  to  lay  down  any  scientific  rules  for  the  composition  of 
the  best  food,  to  give  them.  Though  carp  have  been  fed  quite  generally 
by  the  culturists  of  this  country,  yet  we  know  of  no  scientific  experiments 
having  been  conducted  along  this  line.  The  one  great  difficulty  in  such 
an  investigation  is  to  gather  all  the  excrements  of  the  fish  from  the  water, 
for  analysis  and  comparison  with  the  elements  of  the  food  given,  and 
only  by  such  a  searching  and  thorough  sifting  of  all  the  accompanying 
circumstances,  temperature,  etc.,  could  a  strictly  correct  rule  for  the  pro- 
portion of  the  elements  composing  the  food  be  arrived  at.  By  analagous 
reasoning,  using  such  facts  as  have  been  gathered  by  the  experiments  that 
have  been  conducted  in  Europe,  and  by  the  analysis  of  the  natural  food  of 
the  carp,  an  approximately  correct  rule  may  be  arrived  at.  With  such  a 
rule  established,  and  the  principal  parts  of  the  ingredients  to  be  purchased, 
while  the  outlay  and  the  labor  would  undoubtedly  be  well  rewarded  in  the 
harvest,  it  is  a  question  whether  many  culturists  would  make  the  outlay 
or  perform  the  labor  required. 

Without  questioning  the  motives  of  our  earlier  American  writers  upon 
this  subject,  we  discard  the  proposition  they  laid  dowrn,  to-wit :  That  carp 
were  vegetarians  and  would  live  and  grow  fat  on  the  vegetation  of  the 
pond,  and  if  placed  in  a  mud  hole  barren  of  vegetation  you  had  only  to 
supply  them  with  grass,  lettuce,  cabbage  leaves,  potato  tops,  etc.,  etc.  We 
are  of  the  opinion  that  carp  rarely,  if  ever,  partake  of  any  vegetation,  and 
if  they  do  it  is  only  when  great  hunger  drives  them  to  it,  and  that,  then, 
they  confine  themselves  to  the  tender  shoots  of  some  of  the  water  plants. 
We  have  never  found  either  the  leaves  or  roots  of  plants  in  their  stomach. 
We  have  watched  them 'feeding,  by  the  hour,  and  have  never  seen  them 
attacking  the  vegetation  of  the  pond.  Occasionally  they  would  take  the 
leaf  of  a  plant  in  their  mouth,  but  invariably  spew  it  out  again.  Whether 
hunger  was  compelling  and  nature  resisting,  or  whether  they  took 
the  leaf  into  the  mouth  to  gather  the  insect  life  from  it,  we  are  una- 
ble to  determine,  but  think  it  the  latter.  The  very  face  of  the  matter 
declares  against  it.  A  great  many  of  the  smaller  ponds  of  America,  are 
very  largely  overstocked  with  carp,  and  yet  year  after  year  the  vegetation 
of  these  ponds  increase.  You  may  say  the  fish  in  those  ponds  were  arti- 
ficially fed  ;  grant  it,  but  if  they  were  vegetarians  they  would  only  take 
the  food  supplied,  after  they  had  exhausted  the  vegetable  supplies  of  the 
pond,  and  instead  of  the  vegetation  of  the  pond  increasing  it  would  finally 


PRACTICAL  CARP  CULTURE.  73 

become  extinct.  An  army  of  carp  eating  pond  lillies,  water  grasses,  etc., 
would  quickly  clean  the  pond  out.  We  have  seen  in  a  three-acre  pond  a 
floating  island  about  30  feet  square  composed  almost  entirely  of  pond  lil- 
lies. An  examination  of  them  showed  the  roots  to  be  almost  clean  of  dirt, 
with  some  of  them  broken  off,  not  bitten  off.  What  caused  them  to  float? 
They  came  from  an  end  of  the  pond  where  the  carp  fed  a  good  deal  of  the 
time,  and  in  their  search  for  food  at  their  roots,  worms,  larvae,  &c.,  they 
gradually  undermined  them,  the  interlacing  of  roots  holding  them  together 
until  a  body  large  enough  to  be  affected  by  the  wind,  the  leaves  acting  as 
sails,  broke  loose  and  floated  over  the  pond. 

Again,  the  digestive  organs,  alone,  of  plant-eating  animals,  average 
from  15  to  20  per  centum  of  the  entire  weight  of  the  body,  While  in  flesh- 
eating  animals  the  digestive  organs,  alone,  average  only  from  5  to  6  per 
centum.  In  the  carp  the  entire  entrails  and  internal  organs  of  the  body 
will  not  reach  over  5  per  centum  of  its  entire  weight.  This  fact  of  itself 
is  sufficient  to  determine  that  they  are  not  vegetarians. 

The  natural  food  of  the  carp,  universally  found  in  their  stomachs, 
where  not  artificially  fed,  consists  of  maggots,  worms,  snails,  insects,  lar- 
vae, bugs  and  beetles.  So  far  as  analysis  and  experiment  demonstrate, 
these  contain  an  average  of  about  20  to  1  of  nutritive  matter.  Taking  this 
natural  food  as  a  base  of  operations,  and  considering  in  connection  with  it, 
that  carp  are  of  the  cold  blooded  order,  and  have  no  bodily  heat  to  main- 
tain, and  by  comparison  with  the  hog  which  they  most  resemble  in  appe- 
tite and  rapidity  of  growth ;  we  may  any  of  us  formulate  a  reasonable 
rule  for  the  composition  of  the  food  to  be  given  them  that  will  result  in  the 
least  waste  of  material  and  the  greatest  increase  of  fish  flesh. 

That  the  natural  food  is  the  best  that  can  be  supplied  the  carp,  has  been 
demonstrated,  in  nearly  every  State  in  the  Union,  by  the  marvelous  growth 
they  have  made  in  ponds  where  there  were  but  few  carp  and  an  abundance 
of  natural  food.  In  Northern  Ohio  they  have  reached  a  weight  of  six 
pounds  in  18  months.  In  Texas  a  weight  of  over  20  pounds  in  four  years, 
full  accounts  of  which  were  published  in  "American  Carp  Culture-"  We 
must  endeavor  then  in  the  artificial  food  to  approximate  the  elements  of 
the  natural.  The  growth  of  the  carp  will  then  be  in  ratio  to  the  amount 
of  food  taken,  digested  and  assimilated. 

The  nutritious  matter  in  the  natural  food  is  in  the  proportion  pt  20  to 
1,  nutritious  matter,  or  substances  are  found  in 

1.  Albumen,  or  proteids. 

2.  Fats,  or  oils. 

8.     Starches,  or  carbohydrates. 

To  the  first  group  belong  some  of  the  most  important  food  stuffs,  and 
all  of  them  contain  nitrogen  and  are  therefore  sometimes  termed  unitro- 
geiious  constituents.  Of  this  group  adapted  to  fish  food  are,  meat  of  any 
kind  of  animals,  containing  on  an  average'  about  19  per  cent,  of  albumen ; 
peas  and  beans  an  average  of  about  25  per  cent;  grains  and,  flour  and 
meals  about  9  per  cent.,  potatoes  about  2  per  cent.  The  chief  constituents 
of  the  vital  organs,  the  muscles  and  the  blood,  and  it  is  through  the  blood 


74  PRACTICAL  CARP   CULTURE. 

that  tissue  and  flesh  is  formed,  are  the  proteids  or  albumens. 

Fats  and  starches  or  carbohydrates,  perform  like  functions  in  the  body, 
producing  heat,  energy  and  force.  A  majority  of  the  carbohydrates  belong 
to  the  vegetable  food,  starch,  sugar,  gum  and  dextrine  are  the  most  import- 
ant. The  cell  structure  of  plants  is  allied  to  this  group,  but  when  absorbed 
must  first  be  converted  into  sugar. 

It  is  from  the  first  group  that  we  will  have  chiefly  to  draw  in  the  com- 
position of  food  for  carp,  they  having  no  animal  heat  to  maintain.  The 
demand  for  carbon  is  confined  to  enough  to  give  them  vital  force,  and  to 
consume  or  burn  such  matter  as  becomes  waste  in  the  process  of  life.  In 
the  food  of  man  the  proportion  of  carbohydrates  to  albumen  is  about  4  to 
1,  this  amount  of  carbohydrates  and  fat  are  required  to  keep  up  animal  heat 
and  give  vital  force  and  energy  to  the  body.  To  greatly  change  these  pro- 
portions by  increasing  the  albumen  and  decreasing  the  carbohydrate* 
might  give  him  flesh,  but  it  would  lose  him  his  vigor.  Fish  require  but 
little  force  to  move  through  the  water,  because  the  weight  of  the  water 
displaced  by  its  body  is  equal  to  the  weight  of  the  body  itself.  Owing  to 
these  reasons,  to  rapidly  develop  weight  in  the  fish  the  albumen  must  be 
in  excess  of  the  carbohydrates.  The  rule  which  has  largely  obtained  in 
Germany  is  a  proportion  of  two  pounds  of  the  former  to  one  pound  of  the 
latter-  As  in  the  case  of  the  food  of  man  there  is  no  absolute  necessity  of 
adhering  strictly  to  these  proportions,  as  some  of  the  carbohydrates  not 
used  in  producing  heat  and  consuming  waste  matter  are  probably  con- 
verted into  flesh. 

Carl  Nicklas  lays  down  the  rule  which  has  largely  been  adopted  in 
Germany  with  good  results,  of  nine  pounds  of  dry  substance,  containgfour 
pounds  of  albumen  and  two  pounds  of  corbohydrates,  inclusive  of  fat,  for 
each  1 ,000  pounds  of  carp. 

This  would  allow  to  each  pound  of  carp  a  ration  of  a  little  less  than 
one-seventh  of  an  ounce  a  day.  This  looks  very  small,  but  it  is  not  so.  A 
laboring  man  requires  only  one-fifth  of  an  ounce  a  day  to  each  pound  of 
weight,  and  in  this  the  proportion  of  carbohydrate  is  four  to  one  of  al- 
bumen. 

The  difficulty,  however,  lies  in  the  execution  of  the  rule  of  Carl  Xicklas. 
We  know  of  but  one  substance  capable  of  sufficient  condensation  to  reach 
1be  proportion -of  four  pounds  of  albumen  in  nine  of  matter,  and  whose 
cost  would  permit  its  use,  and  that  is  cheap  meats.  These  by  a  drying  pro- 
cess at  a  proper  temperature,  excluding  the  water,  would  leave  the  alhu- 
inen  in  sufficient  proportion.  It  is  those  dried  meats  converted  into  men! 
M'Hir  that  are  used  under  the  Nicklas'  rule.  In  Germany,  too,  it  must  be 
a  specific  for  carp  food,  as  we  do  not  find  the  German  name,  Flitter  tleiHeh- 
mehl,  defined  in  any  of  the  standard  German  encyclopedias  or  dictiona- 
ries, nor  is  the  article  yet  manufactured  in  this  country,  though  something 
similar  is  manufactured  for  poultry  food. 

Carp,  however,  will  eat  about  four  timen  the  weight  of  the  rations  al- 
lowed to  each  pound  in  the  Nicklas  rule,  so  that  the  weight  of  the  food 
tak'in  being  elastic,  it  gives  better  opportunity  of  reaching  the  proportions? 


PRACTICAL  CARP  CULTURE.  75 

of  albumen,  allowing  the  carbohydrates  to  be  in  excess. 

Farmers,  who  constitute  the  general  culturists  of  this  country,  cannot 
afford  to  enter  into  lengthy  calculations  of  combinations  to  secure  these  pro- 
portions, but  must  make  the  best  use  of  the  material  at  hand.  So  to  aid 
him  in  this  we  will  present  a  few  combinations  that  will  serve  the  purpose 
with  the  least  waste. 

The  great  desideratum  in  artificial  food  is  the  albumen.  The  fish  will 
find  the  carbohydrates  in  the  pond.  Though  there  is  little  food  except 
meet  that  does  not  contain  the  carbohydrates,  and  that  contains  fat  which 
answers  a  similar  purpose. 

First.  The  flesh  of  any  kind  of  dead  animals,  birds,  fish,  frogs,  etc., 
may  be  utilized  and  will  contain  about  the  right  percent  of  nutritive  sub- 
stances. They  should  be  chopped  up  fine  before  being  fed. 

Second.  Fresh  blood  mixed  with  any  of  the  following  substances  in  a 
proportion  of  five  pounds  of  blood  to  one  pound  of  the  other  matter. 
Flour,  wheat  bran,  ground  oats,  barley  meal,  corn  meal,  linseed  meal, 
ground  pean  and  beans,  (these  two  latter  contain  each  about  25  per  cent  of 
albumen,)  making  the  preparation  thick  enough  to  form  balls  or  cakes, 
which  place  in  about  ten  inches  of  water,  where  the  sun  strikes. 

Third.  The  flesh  of  animals  above  mentioned  may  be  mixed  with  the 
cereal  products  named  in  the  second  preparation,  and  boiled  potatoes  in 
the  proportion  of  five  pounds  of  the  flesh  to  one  pound  each  of  the  pota- 
toes and  the  cereal  selected.  In  this  case  they  should  be  thoroughly  mixed 
and  incorporated  each  with  the  other,  and  about  one  pound  of  coarse  salt 
added  to  each  fifteen  pounds  of  the  mixture. 

These  two  last  preparations  may  be  preserved  by  mixing  finely  pul- 
verized clay  or  loam  soil  with  them,  spreading  them  a  half  to  three-quar- 
ters of  an  inch  thick  on  a  level  surface,  and  cutting  into  cubes  about  one- 
half  inch  square,  and  letting  them  dry  in  the  sun. 

FOOD   FOR  YOUNG  FRY. 

Fourth.  The  umbilical  sack  or  yolk  bag,  with  which  the  young  carp 
come  into  the  world,  supplies  their  nourishment  for  four  or  five  days. 
Then  they  need  food  and  begin  and  unlearned  search  for  it.  A  supply  of 
the  right  kind  of  food  at  this  stage  of  their  existence  is  particularly  im- 
portant in  preserving  many  of  them  from  starvation..  It  may  be  a  very 
simple  material,  dry  bread  finely  crumbed,  or  pulverized  crackers,  or  even 
dry  bran  or  shorts  scattered  along  the  edge  of  the  water  on  the  grass  and 
vegetation  of  the  pond.  A  better  preparation  may  be  composed  of  worms, 
snails,  the  brains  of  animals,  ground  or  chopped  up  fine  and  mixed  with 
flour  or  equal  parts  of  flour  and  soft  cooked  potatoes,  and  thoroughly  mixed 
and  incorporated  with  each  other.  It  will  keep  in  a  cool  place  for  a  week, 
and  small  portions  of  it  can  be  fed  daily.  It  should  be  pulverized  into 
small  particles  for  feeding.  This  can  be  accomplished  by  drying  in  the 
sun  or  in  an  oven,  and  forcing  through  a  coarse  seive  or  fine  meshed  screen. 
A  half  pound  of  this  mixture  each  day  will  supply  thousands  of  young  fish 
the  second  week  of  their  existence,  and  each  succeeding  week,  they  need 


76  PRACTICAL    CARP   CULTURE. 

a  little  more.    A  similar  mixture  of  Hour  and  blood  and  potatoes,  will  an- 
swer the  same  purpose  and  may  be  handled  in  the  same  way. 

The  home  food  supply  of  the  carp,  like  the  compost  heap,  may  be 
greatly  increased  by  economy  and  thought.  In  slaughtering  cattle,  hogs, 
poultry,  etc.,  never  waste  the  blood  and  the  offal.  They  are  life  and  flesh 
for  the  carp.  The  scraps  from  the  table  are  the  same.  The  grass  hoppers 
that  scourge  the  west  will  make  good  food  for  them.  In  the  plowing  sea- 
son a  boy  following  after  the  plow  will  pick  up  gallons  of  worms  and  grubs, 
than  which  nothing  is  better  for  the  fish.  The  excrements  of  cattle  dropped 
in  the  pasture  dry  quickly  in  the  sun  and  are  soon  full  of  insects,  maggots 
and  beetles,  which  are  the  natural  food  of  the  carp.  Gather  them  in  a 
wheelbarrow  and  throw  them  into  the  pond. 

To  produce  the  natural  food  of  the  carp  Carl  Nicklas  gives  the  follow- 
ing simple  method : 

"If  there  are  clover  fields  or  meadows  near  the  ponds,  the  carp  may 
be  supplied  with  ample  natural  food  by  cutting  grass,  clover,  or  lucern, 
during  the  months  between  May  and  August,  chopping  it  fine,  pouring 
water  on  it,  and  then  distributing  it  in  small  stacks  in  sunny  places  near 
the  banks  of  the  pond,  so  that  it  may  be  thoroughly  warmed.  On  the  fol- 
lowing morning  water  should  be  again  poured  on  these  stacks,  and,  without 
being  disturbed  in  any  way,  they  should  be  again  exposed  to  the  rays  of 
the  sun,  which  quickly  heats  them  and  produces  putrefaction.  During  the 
following  night  already  numberless  beetles  and  other  insects  will  creap 
into  the  steaming  stacks  and  deposit  their  eggs.  After  three  days  the  stacks 
are  fairly  alive  with  insects  and  their  larvae,  and  the  stacks  are  then  thrown 
just  as  they  are,  into  the  water  near  the  banks.  The  exhalation 
from  the  decaying  vegetable  matter  acts  like  a  bait  upon  the  carp. 
They  eagerly  seek  it,  devouring  the  insects  contained  in  it,  and  also  parti- 
cles of  the  decaying  matter.  The  places  where  the  grass  has  been  thrown 
into  the  water  become  gathering  places  for  many  other  small  animals 
which  breed  there,  and  thus  supply  ample  food  for  the  carp.  These  places 
should  be  kept  up.  As  grass  can  generally  be  had  near  the  banks  of  ponds, 
this  food  is  cheap  and  can  be  obtained  with  very  little  trouble," 

Where  slaughter  houses,  breweries,  distilleries  or  starch  factories  are 
within  reach,  the  refuse  matter  from  these  will  make  a  good  and  cheap 
food,  though  care  must  be  exercised  to  not  so  overfeed  as  to  have  masses 
of  the  material  collect,  decay  and  poison  the  water  of  the  ponds.  To  these 
may  be  added  any  vegetables  that  are  inferior  or  in  which  decay  has  set  in. 
These  latter  should  be  boiled  and  mixed  with  bran. 

If  it  is  not  convenient  to  chop  fine  the  flesh  of  dead  horses,  sheep,  or 
other  animals,  they  should  at  least  be  cut  in  chunks  and  and  distributed 
over  the  pond,  not  the  carcass  thrown  in  whole,  as  poisoning  of  the  water 
may  result  from  its  decomposition.  Such  chunks  of  animal  matter  sus- 
pended to  stakes  above  the  water  will  produce  maggots  without  number 
that  will  in  their  turn  drop  off  into  the  water  and  form  a  continued  sup- 
ply of  food  for  the  fish. 

A  few  cultnrists  in  America  have  been  feeding  whole  wheat,  which 


PRACTICAL   CARP   CULTURE.  77 

after  being  in  the  water  for  a  time  swells  and  softens,  and  occasionally 
sprouts.  In  this  latter  condition  it  makes  a  good  food.  No  results,  how- 
ever, of  these  experiments  have  been  noted.  A  great  many  culturists 
have  been  feeding  bread  made  from  course  shorts  or  bran,  and  report 
great  satisfaction  with  the  results.  The  results  no  doubt  would  have 
been  more  satisfactory  had  the  bran  been  moistened  with  blood  instead  of 
water,  and  then  baked. 

The  plan  adopted  by  some  of  feeding  on  platforms  some  distance  below 
the  water  level,  with  rimmed  edges  to  keep  the  food  from  slipping  off  into 
the  water,  has  advantages  and  disadvantages.  Where  the  carp  are  gen- 
erally fed,  and  depend  on  the  food  supplied,  it  is  to  be  commended,  as  you 
can  always  tell  when  you  are  overfeeding  by  the  remains.  But  where  the 
feeding  is  intended  as  an  aid  or  relief  to  the  food  supply  of  the  pond,  then 
the  matter  given  them  had  better  be  distributed  around  in  the  shallow 
water  of  the  pond,  where  any  remaining  will  stimulate  the  insect  life  of 
the  pond  and  contribute  to  the  future  food  supply  of  the  fish. 

In  connection  with  artificial  feeding  of  the  carp,  many  culturists  have 
practiced  the  blowing  of  a  horn,  the  ringing  of  a  bell,  or  the  making  of 
some  other  noise  to  call  the  fish  to  their  meals.  They  report  that  the  fish 
very  soon  learn  to  come  at  the  call.  One  very  ingenious  contrivance 
worked  automaticly,  at  regular  intervals  rung  a  bell  and  dumped  the  meas- 
ure of  food  on  the  feeding  ground,  and  at  the  clang  of  the  bell  the  fish 
would  swarm  to  the  spot.  These  many  things  resurrected  the  long  mooted 
question:  "Do  fish  hear?"  In  the  hope  of  throwing  some  additional  light 
on  this  very  interesting,  if  not  important  question,  we  entered  into  ar- 
rangements with  Prof.  E.  W.  Claypole,  B.  A.  B.  Sc.,  F.  G.  S.,  &c.,  occupy- 
ing the  chair  of  Natural  Science,  at  Buchtel  College,  Akron,  Ohio,  (author 
of  "  The  Lake  Age  in  Ohio,"  and  one  of  the  publishers  and  editors  of  uThe 
American  Geologist,")  whereby  he  has  furnished  an  illustrated  article 
upon  this  subject,  which  we  present  in  the  next  chapter. 


CHAPTER     X. 

ON  THE  HEARING  OF  FISH. 

By  Prof.  E.  W.  Claypole,  B.  A.  B. '  Sc.,  F.  G.  S.,  &c.,  Buclitel  College, 

Akron,  Ohio. 

There  has  been  and  is  still  not  a  little  controversy  regarding  the  hear- 
ing faculty  in  fish.  Some  have  gone  so  far  as  to  declare  that  they  can.not 
hear  at  all.  Evidence  has  been  freely  quoted  on  both  sides  and  both  par- 
ties have  apparently  made  out  a  case  at  least  to  their  own  satisfaction. 
When  so  decided  a  difference  of  opinion  exists  in  regard  to  a  question  of 
fact,  there  must  be  reason  on  both  sides,  and  it  is  necessary  to  take  all 
these  into  consideration  in  order  to  arrive  at  the  truth. 

Now  there  are  two  methods  of  working  in  a  problem  of  this  kind. 
They  may  be  called  the  structural  and  the  experimental  methods.  Both 
should  be  followed  up  and  if  the  results  coincide  each  will  be  confirmatory 
of  the  other.  The  former  seeks  by  dissection  to  show  that  the  organs  re- 
quired for  hearing  are  present  in  the  fish.  The  latter  seeks  to  prove  from 
their  behaviour  that  fish  do  hear  because  they  act  as  if  they  heard.  The 
former  of  these  methods  will  be  chiefly  followed  in  this  paper.  The  latter 
can  be  employed  by  any  one  who  has  access  to  a  fish  pond  to  test  the  con- 
clusion reached  below. 

No  one  will  dispute  the  premise  that  if  an  animal  has  an  ear  or  ears 
that  animal  should  in  some  degree  at  least  possess  the  faculty  of  hearing. 
Unused  organs  soon  become  rudimentary  and  finally  disappear.  If  con- 
sequently, fish  have  ears,  we  must  infer  that  in  some  manner  or  degree 
they  can  hear. 

It  is  not  necessary  for  this  conclusion  that  the  sense  of  hearing  should 
be  as  perfect  or  complete  as  in  ourselves,  or  that  the  ear  should  show  the 
same  marvelous  complexity  as  it  does  in  man.  This  would  be  highly  im- 
probable. The  fish  zoologically  is  lower  than  man — equally  fitted  to  get 
his  living  in  the  circumstances  wherein  he  is  placed,  but  not  capable  of 
the  variety  and  complexity  of  actions  for  which  we  are  adapted.  Zoolog- 
ically speaking  therefore,  we  shall  expect  to  find  many  if  not  all  of  the  or- 
gans of  the  fish  less  complete — that  is  less  perfect — than  our  own.  With 
increasing  complexity  of  structure  comes  increasing  diversity  of  function. 
The  complex  organ  enables  its  possessor  to  do  what  without  it  would  be 
impossible.  New  avenues  between  the  outer  world  and  the  conscious  centre 
are  opened.  Possibility  of  pleasure  and  of  pain  previously  unrealized 
and  unconceived  comes  into  existence.  The  animal  is  higher  in  the  zoo- 
logical scale.  All  this  will  be  denied  by  few  and  will  be  at  once  admit- 
ted by  all  zoologists.  In  fact  simplicity  of  structure  is  usually  tantamount 


PRACTICAL   CARP  CULTURE.  79 

to  lowness  of  station.  Rank  in  the  organic  world  can  in  most  cases  be  es- 
timated by  structure. 

Applying  this  principle  to  the  case  in  question  let  us  examine  the  or- 
gans of  the  fish  and  see  what  light  they  throw  upon  the  problem. 

It  will,  however,  be  well  before  doing  so,  to  pause  and  give  a  short  ac- 
count of  the  structure  of  the  human  ear,  in  order  that  what  is  to  follow 
may  be  more  easily  understood. 

The  ear  in  its  highest  development  consists  of  three  parts— the  outer, 
middle  and  inner  ear.  These  rise  in  importance  from  the  first  to  the  last. 
The  outer  ear  consists  of  the  "ear"  so-called,  or  "concha,"  of  the  anato- 
mist, (seen  on  the  outside  of  the  head),  and  of  the  blind  tube  leading  in- 
ward from  it.  These  serve  to  catch  the  waves  of  sound  in  the  surrounding 
medium  and  conduct  them  to  the  machinery  situated  within.  Their  use 
and  importance,  it  may  be  therefore  said,  are  strictly  subsidiary  and  their 
absence  but  slightly  affects  the  action  of  the  organ  and  in  no  way  abol- 
ishes the  sense. 

It  may  be  well  to  mention  that  by  the  sense  of  hearing  will  here  be 
meant  that  communication  between  the  conscious  centre  and  the  outer 
world  which  is  effected  by  waves  produced  in  or  conducted  through  a  sur- 
rounding medium,  solid,  liquid  or  gaseous.  These  waves  by  striking  vari- 
ous parts  of  the  organ  awaken  nervous  movement,  is  translated  by  the 
conscious  centre  into  the  sensation  which  we  call  sound. 

It  will  consequently  make  no  difference  whether  the  wave  or  vibration 
be  transmitted  through  the  air  as  in  ordinary  hearing,  or  through  water  as 
when  a  sound  is  heard  by  a  diver,  as  through  a  solid  pipe  or  rod  as  along 
the  metals  of  a  railway.  All  these  waves  alike  reach  the  sensory  organ 
somewhere  and  the  resulting  motion  is  converted  into  a  nervous  impulse.  * 

The  second  "part  of  the  hearing  apparatus  in  man  is  the  middle  ear  or 
drum.  This  contains  a  membrane  stretched  tight  across  the  tube  above 
mentioned  and  closing  it  altogether.  This  membrane — the  drumhead — 
forms  the  bottom  of  the  tube  and  receives  all  the  waves  that  pass  down  it 
from  the  external  year.  In  response  to  these  it  vibrates.  Attached  to  the 
drumhead  is  a  chain  of  .three  small  bones  through  which  the  vibrations  are 
transmitted  onward  to  their  destination.  The  drum  being  closed  against  the 
entrance  of  air  through  the  external  ear  some  other  communication  is  ne- 
cessary to  keep  the  pressure  equal  on  both  sides  of  the  drumhead.  Pain 
and  injury  would  otherwise  result.  This  is  accomplished  by  a  tube  lead- 
ing from  the  drum  to  the  mouth.  The  Eustachian  tube — which  can  be  heard 

*  It  is  needless  to  discuss  the  question  whether  or  not  the  wave  is  heard  or  felt  by  the 
fish,  because  the  same  quibble  might  be  raised  in  regard  to  our  own  hearing.  The  ear  is 
only  a  marvelously  delicate  and  sensitive  organ  of  touch,  and  whether  t^he  wave  of  con- 
densation reaches  it  through  the  air,  the  water,  or  thebonesof  the  head  is  a  matter  of  little 
or  no  importance  to  our  present  subject.  A  blow  violent  enough  to  shake  theob.iects  around 
us  would  doubtless  be  felt  by  our  ordinary  sense  of  touch  and  perhaps.in  addition  by  our 
muscular  sense,  and  the  same  would  be  true  of  fish.  But  no  such  violent  commotion  is 
now  iii  question,  and  the  slight  tremors  that  we  call  sound  beside  differing  somewhat  in 
their  nature  from  those  that  produce  shocks  an-  Car  too  slight  to  be  appreciated  by  any  or- 
iian  save  the  refined  mechanism  of. the  inner  ear. 


80  PKACT1CAL    UAKP    ClLLTLr.KK. 

to  open  with  a  click  at  every  swallow  and  which  allows  the  passage  of  air. 
If  closed  by  disease  deafness  is  likely  to  follow  as  in  catarrh  and  after  scar- 
let fever. 

Here  again  it  will  be  observed  we  have  nothing  but  a  transmitter, 
though  one  whose  presence  is  of  great  importance  to  the  perfection  of  the 
sense  of  hearing  in  the  higher  animals.  Yet  it  is  not  the  essential  part  of 
the  organ,  nor  does  its  absence  destroy  the  sense  or  prevent  the  action  of 
the  other  parts  if  present. 

It  will  be  observed  that  the  air  wave  in  reaching  and  striking  the  drum- 
head is  changed  into  movement  of  the  membrane,  just  as  the  movement 
of  a  drum  stick  is  lost  or  converted  into  movement  of  the  stretched  parch- 
ment of  the  drum.  This  movement  is  passed  on  to  the  first  bone  of 
the  series  which  is  a  bent  lever.  This  transmits  it  to  the  second,  thence  it 
passes  to  the  third,  which  from  its  shape  is  called  the  stirrup-bone.  This 
lies  against  a  membrane  that  closes  an  opening  in  the  bone  of  the  inner 
ear,  and  which  consequently  moves  with  every  movement  of  the  bone. 
Here  for  the  present  we  leave  this  sound-wave. 

The  third  and  most  intricate  and  yet  by  far  the  most  important  part  of 
the  human  organ  of  hearing  is  the  inner  ear.  This  from  its  complexity  is 
well  named  the  labyrinth.  The  annexed  figures  will  aid  the  reader  in  fol- 
lowing the  description,  but  the  whole  structure  cannot  be  well  understood 
without  actual  dissection.  Some  account  of  it  is,  however,  necessary  for 
the  comprehension  of  what  is  to  follow. 

The  labyrinth  or  inner  ear  is  a  chamber  excavated  in  the  ear-bone— 
the  hardest  in  the  body— filled  with  a  watery  liquid,  adjoining  the  middle 
ear  and  having  a  hole  in  the  bony  wall  that  separates  the  two,  which,  how- 
ever, is  not  open  but  closed  with  a  delicate  membrane.  Against  this  lies 
the  stirrup-bone  already  mentioned.  The  form  of  this  chamber  is  exceed- 
ingly complicated,  but  speaking  broadly,  it  consists  of  three  parts.  These 
are,  first  a  central  portion  separated  from  the  middle  ear  by  the  bony  wall 
containing  the  opening  already  mentioned ;  second  and  freely  communi- 
cating with  this  is  a  posterior  portion  in  form  like  the  shell  of  a  snail  and 
severed  from  the  middle  ear  only  by  a  second  delicate  membrane  stretched 
across  a  second  opening  in  the  ear-bone.  Third,  there  are  three  semicir- 
cular tubes  communicating  freely  at  both  ends  with  the  central  chamber. 
These  three  canals  are  roughly  speaking  at  right  angles  with  each  other 
and  like  the  whole  of  the  inner  ear  are  full  of  liquid.  All  this  mechanism, 
both  the  spiral  portion  and  the  canals  is  securely  imbeded  in  cavities  in  the 
bone,  which  makes  their  study  in  the  higher  animals  both  tedious  and  dif- 
ficult. 

We  have  now  reached  the  central  portion  of  the  organ — the  part  by 
which  the  motion  of  the  small  bones  is  converted  into  nerve  motion — the 
part  without  which  no  hearing  is  possible.*  Inside  the  labyrinth  lie  the 
fine  hair-like  tips  of  the  seventh  nerve— the  nerve  of  hearing— floating  as 


*From  the  facts  here  stated  it  may  be  seen  how  many  parts  of  the  ear  may  be  destroyed 
while  the  hearing  yet  remains  in  greater  or  less  perfection.  Indeed  it  appears  as  though 
the  sense  could  never  be  entirely  abolished  so  long  as  the  liquid  of  the  inner  ear  and  the 


PRACTICAL,    CARP    CULTURE.  Si 

it  were  in  the  liquid  that  fills  the  chamber.  These  are  distributed  on  the 
walls  of  the  semicircular  canals,  and  of  the  spiral  cavity,  and  are  ex- 
ceedingly numerous.  Their  ends  are  excited  by  the  vibration  of  the 
liquid  and  the  nerve  currents  thus  produced  are  transmitted  along  the 
nerve  trunk  to  the  brain. 

In  addition  to  the  curious  and  complex  mechanism  already  described 
there  is  another  very  singular  portion  whose  exact  duty  is  but  ill  under- 
stood, but  which  appears  to  be  all  important  if  we  may  judge  from  the 
fact  that  it  is  constantly  present  even  among  animals  very  low  in  the  scale- 
There  is  in  the  labyrinth  a  variable  number  of  small  masses  of  limestone 
resembling  bone  in  appearance.  These  ear-stones  or  "otoliths"  seem  to 
produce  or  to  increase  the  effect  of  the  vibrations  of  the  liquid  on  the  nerve 
ends,  and  in  this  way  perhaps  enhance  the  keenness  of  the  sense. 

The  reader  will  now  be  able  to  follow  the  application  of  the  above  de-» 
scription  to  the  special  case  of  the  fish,  and  to  appreciate  the  value  of  the 
evidence  deduced  therefrom  in  relation  to  the  power  of  hearing  possessed 
by  these  animals.  We  have  already  said  that  the  complexity  of  the  ear 
grows  less  and  less  as  we  descend  in  the  animal  scale.  Part  after  part  dis- 
appears. Important  though  non-essential  accessory  organs  cease  to  be 
present,  and  the  ear  is  reduced  at  length  to  its  most  rudimentary  form, 
namely,  a  simple  chamber  filled  with  liquid  and  containing  the  ends  of 
the  auditory  nerve  and  some  otoliths.  Such  an  ear  is  found  in  the  fresh 
water  mussel  of  our  rivers  and  ponds. 

In  illustration  of  this  statement  I  may  here  state  that  the  external  ear 
is  found  in  all  mammals,  in  most  birds  and  in  some  reptiles.  In  the  am- 
phibians, as  in  the  frog  and  toad,  it  is  absent  and  the  drum  head  of  the  mid- 
dle ear  is  visible  on  the  outside.  In  fishes  a  still  lower  grade  is  found. 
Here  the  middle  ear  or  drum  is  also  absent.  There  is  no  drum  head,  no 
chain  of  small  bones,  and  therefore  no  Eustachian  tube.  The  inner  ear  is 
now  the  only  portion  left. 

The  ear  of  the  fish  accordingly  corresponds  only  to  the  inner  portion 
or  labyrinth  of  the  human  ear,  and  even  this  in  an  incomplete  form,  for 
the  spiral  portion — the  cochlea— is  absent.  The  drum  and  outer  ear  being 
both  undeveloped,  there  are  no  membranous  partitions,  the  two  openings 
in  the  bone  do  not  exist,  and  the  whole  organ  is  shut  up  close  within  the 
bony  cavity  of  the  skull.  It  has  no  direct  channel  of  communication  with 
the  world  outside.  No  trace  of  it  can  be  seen  on  the  surface,  and  some 
care  and  pains  are  necessary  to  demonstrate  its  existence.  Yet  every  part 
that  is  essential  to  hearing  is  present  and  may  be  found.  la  the  cavity  of 
the  skull  and  near  the  base  on  each  side  is  a  recess,  and  in  this  the  ear  is 
situated.  It  is  in  actual  contact  save  for  some  delicate,  separating  mem- 
brane, with  the  brain  itself.  This  recess,  or  alcove,  a8*"it  may  well  be 
called,  extends  from  the  top  of  the  skull  to  a  point  a  little  below  its  base 
and  is  lined  with  a  layer  of  liquid  called  the  lymph  of  the  ear. 


line  ends  of  the  auditory  nerve  remain  undamaged  and  in  connection.  These  are  the  trans- 
lators of  the  sound-waves  into  nerve  vibrations,  and  where  they  are  present  hearing  in  some 
degree  is  possible. 


SL> 


PRACTICAL   CARP  CULTURE. 


Separated  by  this  liquid  from  the  bone,  and  suspended  in  it  is 
the  membranous  ear.  It  consists  of  several  parts.  First  and  most  readily 
seen  is  the  sack  containing  the  otoliths  or  ear-bones.  This  lies  at  the  base 
and  at  the  back  of  the  brain,  and  contains  a  large  otolith  in  front,  behind 
which  is  another  very  small  one.  This  peculiar  bone  of  which  a  figure  in 
given  (figure  c.)  is  loose  in  the  sac  and  is  of  very  irregular  form.  In  a  carp 
of  twelve  inches  long  it  measures  about  one-fourth  of  an  inch  in  length. 
To  its  camelled  edge  are  attached  the  ends  of  the  fine  branches  of  the  aud- 
itory nerve  which  forms  an  intricate  branching  mass  on  the  floor  of  the 
chamber.  These  may  be  easily  seen. 

DESCRIPTION  OF  FIGURES  ALL  ARE  TWICE  THE  NATURAL  SIZE  BUT  D. 


A.    Hind  view  of  head  of  carp. 

P.  C.  I'lace  of  posterior  semi- 
circular canal. 

E.  (!.  Place  of  exterior  semi- 
circular canal. 

S.  C.  Spinal  chord. 

V.     First  vertebra. 

().  Opening  at  back  of  skull 
leading  into  the  brain  cavity. 


15.  Left  ear,  seen  fromoutsidc. 

P.  Posterior  semicircular  canal. 

e.  Anterior  semicircnbir  canal, 

a.  Exterior  semicircular  canal. 

V.  Vestibule  containing  small  ot- 
olith. 

S.  Sac  containg  large  otolit  b. 


('.  otolith  or  earbone  of  right  ear  seen  from  outside. 

The  notches  on  the  edge  are  the  points  of  attachment  ()(   I  be  ends  of  I  lu.< 
librils  of  the  auditory  nerve. 


PRACTICAL  CARP  CULTURE. 


(;.  Figure  of 
left  drum  or  mid- 
dle car  of  mau 
\  ievved  from  the 
front. 

0.  Opening  in 
l)oju-  (closed  by  a 
membrane)  lead- 
ing to  inner  ear. 

S.  Stirrup- bone 
in  place  on  tin 
membrane. 

1.  Middle 
small  boiie,(tHCM«) 

in.  First  small 
tione  (matieaa)  in 
contact  with 
drumhead. 

d.  Drumhead 
or  membrane  sep- 
arating middle 
from  outer  ear. 

t.  Tube  lead- 
ing to  outside. 


D.    Figure  of  1  lie  air  bladder  of  a  carp  10  inches  long  (life-size)  with  second  and.  third 
vertebrae. 

a.    Air-bladder. 

V2.    Second  vertebra*. 

VS.    Third  vertebra-. 

IS.  c.    Spinal  chord. 

P.    Process  from  third  vertebra*  supporting  air-bladder. 

O.    Small  bone  connected  with  air-bladder  and  leading  to  back  of  skull. 


!•:.     Figure!  of  the  left  labyrinth  or  inner  ear  of  man  as 
seen  from  the  outside.    (Sharpey  &  Quain.) 
a.    Anterior  semicircular  canal. 
I'.     Posterior    " 
e.    Exterior     " 
v.    Vestibule, 
c.    Cochlea  or  spinal  portion. 


F.    Section  of    the  left 
us  seen  from  the  outside. 


labyrinth  or  inner  ear  of  man 


a.  Anterier  semicircular  canal. 

p.  Posterior     " 

v.  Exterior       " 

v.  Vestibule. 

(...  Cochlea. 

O.  Opening  to  drum  or  middle  ear. 


X44  PRACTICAL.   CARP   CULTURE. 

Next  there  is  another  chamber  lying  slightly  above  and  in  the  i;ront 
of  the  sac  of  the  otoliths  and  consisting  like  it  of  an  exceedingly  delicate 
transparent  membrane.  This  is  the  central  cavity  or  "vestibule,"  as  it  is 
called  in  man.  It  usually  contains  a  third  otolith  to  which  other  branches 
of  the  auditory  nerve  are  attached  and  is  filled,  as  is  every  part  of  the  ear, 
with  the  liquid  already  mentioned.  It  occupies  most  of  the  alcove  orTe- 
cess  above  spoken  of  except  what  is  taken  up  by  the  sac  of  the  otolith. 
Connected  with  this  vestibule  are  the  three  semicircular  canals  mentioned 
in  the  description  of  the  human  ear.  The  foremost  of  these,  the  anterior, 
rises  from  the  front  of  the  vestibule  and  in  most  fishes  soon  enters  a  tube 
larger  than  itself  in  the  parietal  bone  of  the  skull  in  which  it  loosely  lies. 
This  tube  curves  backward  and  then  downward  and  the  canal  within  it  of 
course  does  the  same  until  it  at  last  emerges  into  the  alcove  of  the  ear  and 
reaches  the  membranous  central  cavity  or  vestibule  at  a  point  further 
back  than  that  from  which  it  started. 

The  second  or  posterior  semicircular  canal  follows  a  similar  course, 
but  its  bony  tube  lies  in  the  occipital  or  hindmost  bone  of  the  skull.  This 
is  also  vertical  but  in  a  "right-and-left,"  and  not  in  a  "fore-and-aft" 
plane.  One  end  of  this  canal  enters  the  alcove  of  the  ear  by  the  same  tube 
which  carries  the  bind  end  of  the  anterior  canal. 

The  third  or  exterior  canal  leaves  the  vestibule  near  the  front  and  winds 
horizontally  backward  in  its  bony  tube  to  reenter  it  near  its  posterior  end. 
There  are  therefore  five  openings  in  the  bone  and  five  openings  in  the  vest- 
ibule for  the  passage  of  the  six  ends  of  the  semicircular  canals.  Two  of 
them,  as  said  above,  unite  before  reaching  the  point  of  entrance. 

Each  of  these  canals  is  expanded  into  a  small  bulb  at  one  end.  Two 
of  these  bulbs  are  situated  at  the  front  and  the  third  at  the  back  of  the 
vestibule.  All  the  above  details  can  be  seen  represented  in  the  figures  ac- 
companying this  chapter. 

Thus  then  we  see  that  the  ear  of  the  fish  is  in  all  essential  points  a  true 
ear,  not  a  rudimentary  ear,  for  the  necessary  portions  might  be  still  fur- 
ther reduced,  and  yet  leave  the  organ  in  a  condition  capable  of  translating 
the  vibrations  of  the  outside  medium  into  nerve  vibrations.  Any  organ 
capable  of  doing  this  is  a  true  ear.  Its  most  striking  character  is  that  it 
is  shut  in  and  has  no  open  channel  of  communication  with  the  world  out- 
side. 

But  the  bones  of  the  head  form  a  medium  by  which  vibrations  or  un- 
dulations can  be  conducted  inwards.  It  is,  indeed,  impossible  to  prevent 
this  inward  conduction  of  all  vibrations  in  the  watery  medium  in  which 
the  animal  lives.  Even  some  deaf  men  may  be  made  to  hear  by  putting 
a  tuning-fork  to  the  teeth  and  so  forming  a  solid  line  of  connection  be- 
tween the  fork  and  the  inner  ear.  In  the  same  manner  a  sound-vibration 
in  the  water  must  be  conducted  through  the  skull-bones  of  a  fish  to  its 
inner  ear  deep  sunk  as  it  is  at  the  base  of  the  skull. 

Evidently  the  ear  of  a  fish  is  not  well  adapted  to  receive  the  vibrations 
of  the  air.  These  are  very  feeble  in  consequence  of  the  lightness  of  that 
medium.  We  ourselves  do  not  hear  sounds  carried  through  the  air  when 


PRACTICAL   CARP  CULTURE.  80 

our  ears  are  stopped,  and  when  the  vibrations  must  pass  through  the 
bones  of  the  head  in  order  to  reach  the  inner  ear.  But  the  ear  of  the  fish 
is  organically  stopped  and  consequently  has  no  opportunity  of  receiving 
such  air-vibrations.  But  those  of  the  heavier  liquid,  the  water  in  which 
it  lives  are  quite  capable  of  penetrating  the  skull.  There  cannot  be  a 
shadow  of  doubt  that  fish  can  hear  sounds  under  water,  that  is,  can  feel 
vibrations  conducted  through  the  water.  Stamp  on  the  ground  by  the 
side  of  a  fish-pond  and  you  may  see  them  start.  Explode  a  cracker  under 
water  and  note  the  commotion  that  follows.  But  on  the  other  hand  many 
kinds  of  fish  seem  indifferent  to  the  voices  of  persons  talking  near  them 
though  anglers  usually  maintain  perfect  silence  "lest  the  fish  should 
hear  them."  Many  a  time  was  I  told  when  a  boy  by  some  patient  sports- 
man to  "  keep  quiet  and  not  frighten  the  fish."  Probably  all  fish  are  not 
equally  sensitive  in  this  respect.  But  it  is  also  quite  likely  that  the  noise 
of  an  ordinary  conversation  is  not  loud  enough  to  create  a  vibration  in  the 
water  sufficiently  strong  to  disturb  them. 

A  wrriter  in  the  November  number  of  the  "  Journal  of  Carp  Culture," 
(1887)  after  telling  how  he  made  a  clock  to  deliver  food  to  the  carp  in  his 
pond  says  that  on  its  striking  a  30-pound  bell  once  a  day  the  fish  assem- 
bled in  great  numbers  at  the  feeding  place.  Here  the  loud  sound  is  con- 
ducted down  the  sides  of  the  building  "which  stands  in  the  pond"  and 
spread  through  the  water.  It  is  consequently  a  water  wave  and  not  the 
air-wave  that  the  fish  perceive.  In  this  way  we  may  I  think  account  for 
the  rather  contradictory  opinions  that  have  been  published  regarding  the 
hearing  of  fish. 

The  above  is  a  general  account  of  the  structure  of  the  ear  among  fishes, 
but  it  cannot  be  literally  and  exactly  applied  to  every  fish.  In  so  large  a 
class  covering  as  it  does  so  great  a  range  of  structure  many  differences 
must  be  expected.  So  we  -find  it.  The  widest  divergence  from  the  type 
is  in  the  semicircular  canals.  These  are  not  equally  developed  in  all  fishes. 
Among  our  common  fresh  water  species  we  find  much  variation  in  this 
respect.  In  the  herring  of  Lake  Erie,  for  example,  the  exterior  and  pos- 
terior canals  are  present  and  are  embedded  in  bony  tubes  in  the  walls  of 
the  skull — the  former  in  the  parietal  and  the  latter  in  the  occipital  bone. 
The  anterior  canal  is  also  present  but  scarcely  sunk  in  the  bone  at  ail,  its 
tube  being  very  short  and  for  the  most  part  cartilaginous.  In  the  pickerel 
again  the  posterior  and  exterior  canals  are  embedded  in  the  bone  but  the 
anterior  is  only  sunk  in  a  groove  formed  by  a  projecting  plate  arising  from 
the  base  of  the  chamber. 

Numerous  other  departures  from  the  typical  ear  of  the  fish  could  be 
cited  to  show  how  this  organ  can  be  traced  from  stage  to  stage  in  degree 
of  complexity  downward  until  it  becomes  almost  rudimentary.  But  to 
do  this  would  not  come  fairly  within  the  proper  domain  of  this  chapter, 
and  it  must  suffice  to  say  that  in  the  sea-lampreys  we  find  an  ear  whose 
simplicity  is  almost  as  marvellous  as  is  the  complexity  of  the  ear  in  man. 
In  these  lowly  fish  the  ear-bones  are  not  fotuid  at  all,  and  consequently  the 
membranous  sac  which  Usually  contains  them  is  absent.  Further  the 


86  PRACTICAL   CARP  CULTURE. 

semicircular  canals  do  not  appear  unless  a  slight  fold  of  the  enclosing 
membrane  can  be  said  to  represent  them  in  a  rudimentary  condition. 
Moreover  the  whole  organ  has  no  bony  envelope  as  in  most  fishes,  but  is 
merely  enclosed  in  a  cartilaginous  or  gristly  capsule  connected  with  the 
brain-cavity.  Sound-causing  vibrations  can  therefore  reach  the  centre 
by  two  channels  either  through  the  solid  bone  of  the  skull  or  more  directly 
through  the  softer  capsule  of  the  ear. 

It  is,  however  , perfectly  relevant  to  the  purpose  of  this  chapter  to 
dwell  at  rather  more  length  on  the  ear  of  the  carp  which  presents  some 
peculiarities  deserving  notice.  In  this  fish  and  others  more  or  less  nearly 
allied  to  it,  there  is  a  very  singular  apparatus  seemingly  adapted  to  assist 
the  hearing.  The  air-bladder  of  the  carp  consists  of  two  parts  only 
slighly  connected.  The  fore  part  is  a  short  cylinder  with  rounded  ends 
and  supported  by  a  projecting  process  from  the  third  vertebra.  Attached 
to  the  front  of  this  part  of  the  bladder  are  two  small  bones  that  point  for- 
ward and  upward  toward  the  back  of  the  skull.  These  communicate  with 
two  small  chambers  in  the  occipital  or  hindmost  bone  of  the  head  which 
are  in  direct  connection  with  the  cavity  of  the  ear.  By  means  of  these 
bones  a  line  of  communication  is  maintained  between  the  air-bladder  and 
the  ear.  This  apparatus  can  be  traced  out  by  careful  dissection.  Moreover 
in  the  carp  the  back  of  the  skull  is  completely  open  or  at  least  contains 
two  large  passages  that  occupy  a  great  part  of  its  area,  whereas  in  most 
other  fishes  it  is  shut  in  by  a  bony  wall.  These  details  are  shown  in  fig- 
ure A  or  figure  D. 

The  carp  therefore  has  two  means  of  receiving  waves  of  sound — one 
through  the  bones  of  the  skull  and  the  other  through  the  air-bladdder. 
ft  is  not  possible  at  present  to  say  if  these  two  supplement  one  another — 
each  doing  a  different  kind  of  work — or  reinforce  one  another — each  con- 
veying similar  vibrations  so  as  to  produce  a  stronger  impression  on  the 
conscious  centre. 

In  the  carp  it  is  moreover  worthy  of  notice  that  the  extent  of  the 
semicircular  canals  is  very  great.  The  bony  tubes  in  which  they  lie  are 
not  excavated  in  the  immediate  wall  of  the  skull  as  is  usually  the  case, 
but  the  cranial  bone  is  extended  into  broad  wings  two  of  which  are  verti- 
cal and  the  third  horizontal.  The  three  together  form  a  sinus  or  chamber 
outside  of  the  cavity  of  the  skull  which  is  open  below  but  closed  above, 
behind  and  outside.  This  structure  gives  a  great  apparent  width  to  the 
head  when  viewed  from  behind  without  at  all  increasing  the  actual  brain 
capacity.  But  at  the  same  time  it  gives  an  opportunity  for  much  expan- 
sion of  the  semicircular  canals  so  that  these  bony  wings  with  their  enor- 
mous enclosed  sinus  may  be  regarded  as  a  special  development  of  the  ear. 
It  must  not  hence  be  inferred  that  this  anatomical  structure  is  peculiar  to 
the  carp.  It  may  be  found  in  other  nearly  related  fishes  but  it  is  in  strong 
contrast  with  the  contracted  limits  of  the  bony  canals  in  the  herring,  the 
pickerel,  &c. 

The  sac  of  the  otolith  in  the  carp  is  also  much  depressed  and  is  situ- 


PRACTICAL  CARP  CULTURE.  87 

ated  not  only  below  but  almost  under  the  brain  in  a  cavity  excavated  in 
the  first  vertebra. 

All  the  various  details  here  given  regarding  the  ear  of  the  fish  and 
especially  of  the  carp  are  illustrated  in  the  diagrams  accompanying  this 
chapter* and  the  general  facts  connected  with  the  anatomy  of  the  organ 
deprived  of  all  unnecessary  detail  have  been  explained  as  fully  as  the 
limits  allow.  It  may  be  as  well  to  state  that  the  article  has  been  drawn 
up  for  the  use  of  the  general  reader  and  not  for  the  professional  anatomist 
and  is  consequently  as  free  from  technical  language  as  it  was  desirable  to 
make  it.  This  will  1  hope  serve  as  an  apology,  if  apology  is  needed,  in 
case  these  pages  should  fall  into  the  hands  of  any  student  of  anatomy  and 
he  should  be  disappointed  by  the  absence  of  the  familiar  and  time  hon- 
ored, and  in  the  technical  treatise  useful  and  indispensable,  phraseology. 

In  conclusion  the  writer  only  desires  to  express  the  hope  that  he  has 
succeeded  in  presenting  the  case  clearly  enough  to  remove  from  the  mind 
of  his  reader  any  lurking  doubt  regarding  the  ability  of  fish  to  hear.  Such 
an  organ  as  has  been  here  described  can  certainly  not  be  without  its 
function  and  though  fish  may  be  comparatively  indifferent  to  sounds  in 
the  atmosphere  yet  they  certainly  hear  vibrations  passing  through  the 
denser  fluid  in  which  they  live. 


CHAPTER  XT. 

WATER  PLANTS  FOB  CARP  PONDS. 

A  luxuriant  growth  of  plants  in  portions  of  the  pond,  adapted  to  their 
production,  not  only  beautify  the  sheet  of  water  but  serve  several  import- 
ant purposes,  and  is  an  important  factor  in  successful  pond  culture. 
They  are  remedial  agents  in  imbibing  carbon  and  throwing  off  oxygen, 
thus  greatly  contributing  to  a  healthy  condition  of  the  water.  They  are 
almost  indispensable  to  the  spawning  pond  and  if  not  present  artificial 
methods  of  catching  the  eggs,  such  as  using  the  branches  of  trees,  must 
be  resorted  to.  They  are  the  legitimate  accessories  of  all  ponds,  as  on 
their  stalks  and  leaves  multitudes  of  bugs  and  insects,  throughout  the 
entire  season,  deposit  their  eggs  and  hatch  their  young,  which  become  the 
natural  food  of  the  carp.  It  is  thus  that  these  portions  of  the  ponds, 
where  the  vegetation  grows,  become  the  natural  feeding  grounds  of  the 
carp. 

Gravel  and  stone  bottom  ponds  are  almost  barren  of  vegetation,  there- 
fore produce  but  little  insect  life,  and  hence  such  ponds  are  desirable  for 
carp  culture,  only  when  artificial  feeding  is  resorted  to. 

The  measure  of  life  in  the  water  as  out  of  it,  is  the  fertility  of  the  soil. 
In  this  will  be  found  the  reason  why  carp  do  much  better,  in  some  ponds, 
than  in  others  in  the  same  neighborhood,  the  ponds  being  similar  in 
everything  but  the  fertility  of  bottom,  and  the  vegetation  produced. 

There  are  several  families  of  water  plants  and  a  number  of  varieties 
of  other  families,  that  are  abundant  and  common  in  nearly  all  portions  of 
the  United  States,  while  others  are  confined  naturally  to  certain  sections. 
The  manna  grass  mentioned  in  another  chapter  is  specially  adapted  to  the 
spawning  pond,  and  the  fish  eat  its  seeds,  but  it  cannot  compare  in  beauty 
with  the  pond  lilly.  So  that  in  stocking  a  pond  with  plants  it  is  well  to 
keep  in  view,  both  the  ornamental  and  the  useful.  The  water  lilly  family, 
is  great  in  the  variety,  beauty  and  fragrance  of  its  flowers,  and  perhaps  no 
other  one  family  combines  the  beautiful  and  useful  to  so  great  an  extent. 
But  tastes  differ,  and  every  culturist  must  select  for  himself.  Some  must 
put  up  with  what  they  can  get,  while  others  can  get  just  what  they  want. 

To  aid  culturists  in  getting  plants  that  are  native  to  the  waters  nearest 
their  homes,  we  furnish  the  accompanying  list  taken  from  the  Bulk-tin 
of  the  United  States  Fish  Commission: 

WATER  PLANTS  FOR  CARP  PONDS. 

By  Lester  F.  Ward. 

The  following  list  embraces  only  such  plants  as  were  named  in  a  list 
furnished  by  Mr.  Rudolph  Hessel,  superintendent  of  the  carp  ponds.  The 


PRACTICAL,  CARP  CULTURE.  89 

names  given  in  that  list  where  obsolete  are  placed  in  parenthesis,  the 
modern  ones  standing  before  them.  The  vernacular  name  of  each  is 
added  wherever  it  is  known,  and  the  localities  of  the  American  species 
are  given  according  to  the  best  authorities.  When  found  in  the  vicinity 
of  Washington  the  particular  locality  is  mentioned.  In  the  case  of  exotics 
the  general  region  of  the  globe  is  stated. 

RANUNCULACE^E—  CROWFOOT   FAMILY. 

Ranunculus  aquatilis,  L.  —  White  Water-Crowfoot.  —  The  type  is  rare, 
but  the  var.  trichopyllus,  Gray,  is  common  in  the  United  States.  The  var. 
heterophyllus,  DC.  (JR.  heterophyllun,  Weber),  is  chiefly  a  European  form. 
Ranunculus  multijidus,  Pursh.  (Ranunculus  fluviatilis,  Bigel)  —  Yellow 
Water-Crowfoot  —  East  New  England  to  South  Pennsylvania,  Illinois  and 
Northwest.  Caltha  palustris,  L.  —  Marsh  Marigold,  Cowslips.  —  Common 
North  and  West. 

NYMPH.EACEJ5.—  WATER  LILLY  FAMILY. 

Cabomba  caroliniana,  Gray.  —  Florida  to  North  Carolina  and  west- 
ward. Nymphwa  odorata,  Ait.  —  Sweet-scented  white  Water  Lilly.  — 
Found  at  Great  Falls  and  below  Long  Bridge.  Common  in  the  Northern 
States,  tfymphcea  tuberoita,  Paine.  —  Tube-bearing  Water  Lilly.  —  West- 
ern New  York  to  Michigan,  Illinois,  and  probably  in  the  Southern  States. 
Nuphar  luteum,  Smith.  —  Smaller  yellow  Pond  Lily.  —  Chiefly  European  ; 
the  var.  pumilum,  Gray  (JV.  pumilum,  Smith),  is  not  rare  northward  m 
the  United  States. 

HALORAQEJB  —  WATER  MILFOIL  FAMILY. 

Myriophyllum.  —  Water  Milfoil.  —  Six  species  are  found  in  the  Northern 
United  States,  of  which  M.  spicatum  is  the  most  common,  and  occurs 
sparingly  near  Washington.  Hippuris  Vulgaris,  L.  —  Mare's  Tail.  —  New 
York  to  Kentucky  and  northward;  rare  in  the  United  States;  more  com- 
mon in  Europe. 


—  EVENING   PRIMROSE  FAMILY. 

Trapa  natans,  L.  —  Europe,  Siberia. 

UMBELLIFER^E  —  PARSLEY  FAMILY. 

Oenanthe  sarmentosa,   Presl.  (Phellandrium  aquaticum,  L.)  —  Oregon 
and  Washington  Territory. 

%  PRIMULACEJE  —  PRIMROSE  FAMILY. 

Hottonia   injia.ta,   Ell.   (//.  palustrus,   Pursh.)  —  Featherfoil.  —  Massa- 
chusetts to  Louisiana. 

POLYOONACE.K  —  BUCKWHEAT    FA  MILY 

Polygonum     (amphibium,     L.     ?)  —  Water  Persicaria.  —  Common.     Has 
been  sparingly  found  near  Georgetown,  D.  C. 

CERATOPHYLLACEJE  —  HORNWORT  FAMILY. 

Ccratophyl-fum  rfc  inn-sum,  L.  —  Horn  wort.  —  Abundant. 


f>0  PRACTICAL   CARP   CULTTTKK. 

ABACEJR — ARUM  FAMILY. 

Acorus  calamus,  L. — Sweet  Flag,  Calamus. — Common. 

LEMNACE^R — DUCKWEED    FAMILY. 

Lemna*  trisulca,  L. — Duckweed,  Duck's  meat. — Widely  diffused. 
Lemna  minor,  L. — America  and  Europe.  Lemna  gibba,  L. — Chiefly  in 
Europe,  but  has  been  found  in  Arizona. 

TYPHACE^E — CAT-TAIL  FAMILY 

Typha  latifolia,  L. — Cat-Tail  Flag. — Very  Common.  Typha  angusti,- 
folia,  L. — Narrow-leaved  Cat-Tail. — Less  common,  but  found  in  this  dis- 
trict and  notably  in  a  pond  near  the  foot  of  Eighteenth  street. 

NAIADACE^E— POND-WEED  FAMILY. 

Potamogeton  natans,  L. — Pond-weed. — Common. 

ALISMACE^E— WATER-PLANTAIN    FAMILY. 

Alisma  natans,  L. — Water-plantain. — Europe,  Siberia,  Sagittaria 
variabilis,  var.  latifolia,  Eng.  (Sagittaria  latifolia,  Willd.)— Arrowhead. 
— Common.  Butomus  umbellatus,  L.— Europe,  Northern  Asia. 

HYDROCHARIDACE^E — FROG'S  BIT  FAMILY. 

Anacharis  canadensis,  Planchon.  (Elodeacanadensis.  Michx.) — Water- 
weed.— Common.  Valisneria  spiralis,  L.— Tape-grass,  Eel-grass.— Com- 
mon. 

IRIDACE^E— IRIS  FAMILY. 

Iris  pseud acorus,  L.— Europe;  Siberia. 

JUNCACE^E — RUSH  FAMILY. 

Juncu*  effusus,  L.  (=«/.  conglomerates,  L.) — Common  Rush. 

CYPERACE^E — SEDGE  FAMILY. 

Scirpus  lacustris,!^. — Bulrush,  Tule. — Common. 

GRAMINE^E— GRASS  FAMILY. 

Zizania  aquntica,  L. — Indian  Rice,  Water  Oats. — Potomac  Flats,  etc. 
Glyceria  aquntica,  Smith — Reed  Meadow  Grass. — Common  northward. 
Glyceria  flwtans,  R:  Br. — Common,  but  has  not  been  found  nearer  Wash- 
ington than  Great  Falls.  Festuca  fluitans,  Leeds- -Europe.  Phravmite* 
communis,  Triu.  (Arunda phrag mites,  L.) — Reed,  Cane. 

CRYPTOGAMIA. 

Azolla  caroliniana,  Willd. — New  Yord  to  Illinois  and  southward. 

We  omitted  from  this  list  the  Utricularia  vulgaris,  or  Bladderwort,  be- 
cause of  its  fish-eating  character,  as  shown  in  a  former  chapter. 

Culturists  wishing  any  of  these  plants  can  be  supplied  by  addressing 
Hugo  Mulertt,  64  Calhoun  street,  Cincinnati,  Ohio,  or  W.  S.  Ritchie, 
Hudson,  Ohio. 


CHAPTER  XII. 

FISH  AS  FOOD. 

The  following  valuable  article  on  this  subject  was  published  in  the 
Farm  &  Fireside  in  1884,  signed  E.  T.  N.: 

"The  International  Fisheries'  Exhibition  at  London,  has  just  closed, 
after  a  session  of  several  months.  It  brought  together  a  large  number  of 
persons  engaged  in  this  industry,  and  perhaps  a  still  larger  number  of 
those  who  are  studying  the  questions  which  the  industry  involves.  It 
must  follow  that  the  papers  read  in  the  conferences  are  of  great  and  per- 
manent value.  Sir  Henry  Thompson,  who  was  introduced  as  "one  of  the 
most  eminent  surgeons  in  the  world,"  spoke  on  the  topic  which  stands  at 
the  head  of  this  article.  The  United  States  commisioner,  who  rose  to 
move  a  vote  of  thanks  to  Sir  Henry,  pronounced  the  paper  the  most  im- 
portant which  had  been  read,  and  added  the  hope  that  it  might  be  trans- 
lated into  many  languages  and  be  widely  distributed.  It  is  our  purpose 
to  review  the  paper  in  order  to  make  public  its  wealth  of  facts.  With 
these  statements  we  shall  feel  free  to  use  the  exact  language  of  the  report 
when  it  best  suits  our  purpose,  and  that  without  marks  of  quotation. 

The  author  first  attempts  to  show  the  value  of  fish  by  comparing  it 
with  other  well-known  forms  of  food.  In  every  hundred  pounds' weight 
of  healthy  flesh  not  artificially  fattened,  whether  beef,  mutton  or  poultry, 
and  from  which  the  bone  has  been  removed,  about  seventy-five  to 
seventy-eight  pounds  of  water  are  present,  and  are  separated  as  such  from 
the  solid  matter  in  the  processes  of  cooking  and  digestion.  Perhaps 
twenty-five  pounds  are  solid  matter  and  alone  contains  the  nutritive 
material.  Of  this  nutritive  material  about  sixteen  or  seventeen  pounds 
consist  of  the  essential  elements  of  flesh,  and  of  the  solid  parts  of  the 
blood.  These  are  variously  named  by  authors— the  flesh-forming,  the 
nitrogenous,  or  the  albuminoid  elements.  Of  gelatine,  with  some  allied 
compounds,  about  one  to  two  pounds  are  present.  These  are  also  nitro- 
genous, but  are  quite  distinct  from  the  former  class,  and  possess  less 
nutritive  value.  The  fat  is  very  variable  in  quantity,  but  may  be  estim- 
ated -at  from  two  to  four  pounds  per  hundred.  The  remainder  of  the 
twenty-five  pounds  of  solid  matter  consists  of  salts,  mineral,  and  even 
metalic  substances,  all  of  which  are  essential  parts  of  the  body. 

In  one  hundred  pounds  of  fish  without  bone,  from  seventy-five  to 
eighty-five  are  water,  leaving  as  an  average  about  twenty  pounds  of  the 
solid  or  nutritive.  (The  ^arp  has  20.2  per  cent.)  The  nitrogenous  may 
amount  to  eighteen  pound-,  but  it  is  more  frequently^ from  twelve  to  four- 
teen. The  gelatine-forming  portion  is  in  excess  as  compared  with  the 
flesh  of  land  animals.  The  fat  varies  with  the  season  and  with  the  species 


92  PRACTICAL  CARP  CULTUUE. 

• 

— is  less  than  one  pound  per  hundred  in  most  of  the  common  fish,  but 
rises  to  seven  pounds  in  the  herring,  to  twelve  in  the  salmon,  and  to  thirty 
in  the  eel.  In  the  land  animals,  as  well  as  fish,  a  portion  of  the  fat  ac- 
oumulates  at  the  expense  of  the  nitrogenous  elements,  but  much  the 
greater  portion  simply  replaces  the  water.  Since  fat  is  a  true  food,  it  is 
evident  that,  pound  per  pound,  the  flesh  from  well-fattened  animals  has 
a  greater  nutritive  value  than  that  from  poorly-fattened  animals. 

With  these  data  before  us,  which  have  been  worked  out  by  Sir  Henry 
Thompson,  we  are  able  to  judge  of  fish  as  an  article  of  food.  The  human 
stomach  is  often  like  a  balky  horse — it  needs  a  new  sensation  to  make  it 
go.  The  relish  with  which  we  greet  the  various  productions  of  the  farm 
and  the  garden,  in  their  season,  proves  that  the  law  is  almost  universal. 
Leaving  out  the  question  of  variety  upon  our  tables,  the  flesh  of  fish  ranks 
next  to  that  of  the  domesticated  animals  in  its  nutritive  elements,  and 
surpasses  all  the  productions  of  the  farm  in  this  respect,  as  well  as  also  in 
the  ease  by  which  it  is  digested.  The  solid  elements  of  the  flesh  of  fish 
are  rather  more  soluble  than  are  those  of  the  flesh  of  the  domesticated 
animals,  as  the  following  experiments  clearly  show : 

A  pound  of  rump-steak,  one  pound  of  fish,  each  without  skin  and 
bone,  were  thus  separately  treated.  The  flesh  was  passed  twice  through  a 
sausage  machine,  and  one  pint  of  cold  water  added  to  each.  After  stand- 
ing one  hour,  the  mass  was  heated  to  boiling  point,  and  allowed  to  sim- 
mer ten  minutes,  then  strained  through  muslin  cloth.  A  very  careful 
analysis  proved  that  the  solid  or  nutritive  portion  of  the  beef-tea  weighed 
276  grains,  while  that  of  the  fish-tea  weighed  396  grains.  After  making 
full  allowance  for  the  gelatine  which  is  in  excess  in  the  fish  product,  it 
appears  that  fish-broth  contains  twenty  per  cent,  more  nutritive  material 
than  beef-broth.  But  we  must  not  overlook  the  fact,  as  the  author  shows, 
that  there  is  an  indescribable  something  in  beef-tea  which  gives  it  great 
value  as  a  nutritive  agent. 

The  complaint  is  sometimes  urged  that  a  fish  diet  does  not  satisfy  the 
cravings  of  the  system,  and  that  the  desire  for  food  soon  returns.  The 
reason  for  this  is  obvious.  No  one  article  of  food  is  perfect  in  containing 
all  the  elements  required  by  the  human  body.  Some  are  rich  in  nitrogen, 
but  poor  in  starch  and  fat;  others  may  contain  the  latter  elements  and 
lack  the  former.  Hence  the  absolute  necessity  for  a  mixed  diet.  Fish,  as 
a  rule,  contain  but  little  fat — much  less  than  beef,  and  far  less  than  pork. 
It  should  accompany,  rather  than  take  the  place  entirely  of  these,  other 
meats. 

The  author,  while  engaged  in  his  investigations,  observed  that  the 
hard-laboring  fishermen  on  the  coasts  of  Cornwall  have  a  very  appropri- 
ate diet.  Portions  of  any  fresh  fish  are  cut  up  and  placed  in  a  large  pie- 
dish,  and  among  them  some  thick  morsels  of  fat  pork ;  the  whole  is  cov- 
ered with  a  substantial  crust,  and  baked.  Those  of  our  readers  who  live 
in  New  England  know  that  one  cannot  make  a  good  "chowder"  without 
using  at  least  a  few  slices  of  fat,  salt  pork.  There  are  many  persons  to 
whom  flsh,  cooked  in  an  appetizing  manner  would  be  a  thankful  relief 


PRACTICAL    CAR!'    CULTTRi:.  y3 

from  the  salted  meats  which  are  so  universally  found  upon  the  tables  of 
the  farmer,  especially  during  the  summer  months.  The  young,  the  in- 
firm and  the  aged  would  find  their  digestion  improved  and  their*  sleep 
more  refreshing  if  they  were  to  substitute  an  occasional  dish  of  fish  in  the 
place  of  the  ham  and  the  corned  beef. 

St.  Paul  tells  us  that  strong  meat  belongeth  to  them  that  are  of  full 
age,  even  those  who  by  reason  of  use  have  their  senses  exercised  to  dis- 
cern both  good  and  evil.  Taken  in  a  physiological  sense,  that  seems  to 
teach  clearly  that  only  those  who  have  reached  their  full  strength,  and 
are  doing  manual  labor  of  the  severest  kind,  can  with  safety  load  their 
stomachs  as  so  many  of  us  are  constantly  doing.  We  no  longer  wonder 
that  farmers  grow  old  prematurely,  and  that  so  many  of  them  are  dys- 
peptic, and  that  so  frequently  they  are  compelled  to  end  their  lives  within 
the  walls  of  an  asylum  for  the  insane,  when  we  learn  how  they  live 
what  they  eat,  and  the  lack  of  true  business  principles  in  their  daily 
work.  Let  them,  therefore,  eat  fish,  and  avoid  all  these  ills." 

THE  CARP  AS  A  FOOD  FISH. 

It  is  no  longer  necessary  to  speed  over  to  Europe  for  testimony  upon 
the  table  qualities  of  the  carp.  There  are  a  half  a  million  people  in  the 
United  States  who  will  testify  to  the  excellent  flavor  and  character  of 
their  flesh.  Seeking  the  very  best  of  our  native  fishes  with  which  to 
compare  them.  In  fact  the  criticisms  and  complaints  are  so  few  as  to 
deserve  no  attention.  All  men  do  not  like  roast  pork,  roast  beef,  nor  even 
roast  turkey  with  cranberry  sauce,  while  there  are  others  who  decline  the 
delicious  bivalve,  in  any  form  it  may  be  prepared,  and  there  are  thou- 
sands who  turn  away  from  frogs  quarters.  It  is  true  that  tastes  differ, 
and  that  prejudice  often  governs  taste,  and  that  excellent  people  will 
differ  in  their  opinions  and  judgment.  It  is  not  saying  too  much  to  claim 
that  there  is  less  difference  of  opinion  on  the  good  eating  qualities  of  carp 
by  those  who  have  partaken  of  their  flesh,  than  there  is  in  the  same  num- 
ber of  persons  on  the  edible  qualities  of  a  goose  or  a  hog.  The  testimony 
on  this  point  is  all  on  one  side.  Out  of  nearly  1,000  letters  relating  to  this 
one  subject,  only  13  or  about  1>^  per  centum  have  any  criticisms  to  make. 
The  other  98^'  per  centum  speak  in  their  praise.  Space  will  not  permit 
the  publication  of  these  opinions,  nor  does  it  seem  necessary.  Those 
seeking  such  information  are  referred  to  the  back  numbers  of  "American 
Carp  Culture."  Every  farmer  can  raise  his  own  fish  food,  as  well  and 
more  easily  than  he  can  raise  poultry  or  pork,  and  contribute  greatly  to 
his  own  and  his  family's  health,  prosperity  and  happiness. 

The  flesh  of  animals  used  for  stock-getting  purposes  is  not  fit  for  the 
table  during  the  season  of  service  and  breeding.  The  same  is  true  of 
poultry,  and  applies  with  equal  force  to  fish,  especially  the  summer 
spawning  classes,  to  which  the  carp  belong.  At  such  seasons  the  flesh  of 
all  animals  is  unpalatable.  In  the  females  it  is  soft  and  flabby  and  in  the 
males  strong.  In  this  fact  lien  the  secret  of  most  of  the  criticisms  made 
on  the  edible  qualities  of  the  carp.  They  have  been  eaten  during  th* 


94  PRACTICAL,    CAKP    CULTURE. 

spawning  season,  or  perchance  taken  from  some  mudbole,  where  the 
wonder  is  they  continued  to  live,  and  from  which  nothing  healthy  or 
toothsome  could  come.  Then  it  is  to  be  rer.  erabered  that  cooking  has 
much  to  do  with  the  taste  of  any  food,  and  t  at  poor  cooking  will  spoil 
the  best  of  food.  Those  critics  whose  judgin-  it  was  not  affected  by  any 
of  these  causes,  simply  differ  in  their  taste  1  oin  the  great  majority  of 
mankind. 

The  larger  the  fish  the  firmer  the  flesh,  is  a  principle  that  holds  good 
with  all  kinds  of  fish.  Carp  from  a  weight  of  two  pounds  and  upward 
are  best  for  table  use.  Many,  however,  weighing  from  one-half  pound 
upwards  have  been  fried,  and  pronounced  excellent. 

The  larger  the  pond,  and  the  more  vegetation  there  is  in  it,  the  clearer 
will  be  the  water,  and  the  better  the  fish. 

Large  fish  are  best  adapted  to  baking  and  boiling,  smaller  ones  to 
frying. 

Upon  taking  the  carp  from  the  water  kill  it  immediately,  and  let  it 
bleed  freely ;  scale  it  and  remove  the  intestines.  It  is  then 

BEADY  FOB  THE  COOK, 

with  whom  the  responsibility  of  a  savory  dish  will  rest. 

Many  elaborate  methods  of  boiling,  baking,  frying  and  pickling  and 
otherwise  preparing  the  carp  for  the  table,  have  come  to  us  from  the 
centuries  of  experience  with  this  fish  in  Europe.  While  experience  is 
not  to  be  discarded,  we  do  not  feel  like  setting  forth  those  methods  here. 
In  some  receipes  the  many  condiments,  pickles,  jellies,  etc.,  used  seem 
designed  to  cover  up  the  very  excellent  taste  of  the  carp. 

Cook  a  carp  the  same  as  you  would  any  other  fish  of  the  same  size, 
and  if  you  like  the  other  fish  thus  prepared,  you  will  be  more  than  satis- 
fied with  the  carp. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

POT    POURI. 

Tn  spreading  the  table  for  our  guests  some  of  the  bounties  prepared 
were  untouched,  overlooked — so  we  gather  them  up  for  an  after  feast, 
where  they  will  stand  out  more  prominently,  because  isolated. 

GERMAN  CARP 

In  this  country  are  few  and  far  between.  The  only  real  German  carp 
in  America  are  those  that  were  imported,  either  by  Capt.  Robinson  about 
1830,  and  which  escaped  into  the  Hudson  river,  and  so  are  not  available, 
and  the  five  tiny  ones  that  reach3d  alive,  the  ponds  of  Mr.  Poppe  at 
Sanoma,  California,  in  August,  1872,  and  the  345  imported  by  the  United 
States  Fish  Commission,  in  1877.  Allowing  that  all  of  these  are  now 
alive,  there  are  only  350  German  carp  in  America.  The  millions  of  other 
carp  in  this  country,  are  just  as  good,  and  many  of  them  much  better 
than  the  original  stock,  but  they  are  not  German  carp,  and  to  call  them 
so  is  a  misnomer,  and  an  injustice,  that  has  in  it  no  advantage  for  the 
culturists.  They  are  the  offspring,  the  progeny  of  the  German  carp, 
raised  in  American  water,  on  American  food  from  birth  and  are  Ameri- 
can carp,  just  as  much  as  a  child  of  German  parentage,  born  in  this 
country  is  at  manhood  an  American  citizen. 

We  have  no  other  carp  in  this  country  than  those  mentioned. 

In  buying  carp  then  do  not  be  misled  by  the  name  given  them.  De- 
termine which  variety  you  want,  then  buy  the  largest  growth,  for  the  age, 
that  you  can  get.  The  large  growth  being  evidence  that  they  are  uot 
stunted,  and  buy  of  a  responsible  culturist,  who  either  raises  but  the  one 
variety,  or  keeps  the  varieties  strictly  separate,  in  different  ponds.  You 
will  then  have  good  stock  to  start  with,  and  can  produce  the  best  type  of 

the  variety  selected. 

\ 

HYBRIDIZATION. 

The  varieties  if  grown  together  will  cross,  and  lose  their  characteris- 
tics. If  raised  for  home  consumption,  this  will  not  be  so  serious  a  matter. 
If  raised  to  sell  for  stocking  purposes,  it  will  be  more  serious,  as  beginners 
should  start  out  with  a  pure  blood  of  either  of  the  varieties,  and  by  care 
breed  that  variety  to  the  highest  possible  type. 

The  crossing  of  the  varieties  is  to  be  deprecated,  but  cannot  be  com- 
pared in  seriousness  with  the  crossing  with  other  summer  spawning  fish, 
which  are  comparatively  worthless  as  food.  These  latter  crossings 
deteriorate  from  the  high  standard  of  the  carp,  and  give  it  an  inferior 
place  among  food  fishes.  The  wonderful  crossings,  and  hybridization  we 


96  PRACTICAL  CARP   CULTURE. 

find  in  the  native  fishes,  warn  us  to  fix  no  limit  to  the  hybridization  of 
the  carp.  We  simply  raise  our  voice  to  urge  the  keeping  of  the  carp  by 
themselves. 

HOW  TO  DISTINGUISH  THE  SEX  OF  CARP. 

This  is  a  very  important  matter,  either  in  the  selection  of  breeders 
for  sale,  or  for  stocking  the  spawning  or  hatching  pond. 

One  of  our  early  American  writers  on  carp  culture,  declared  that  the 
sexes  could  not  be  distinguished,  unless  at  the  spawning  season  when  the 
female  was  very  large.  But  then  it  was  the  same  author  that  linked  the 
hearing  of  fish  and  marines  in  the  same  breath,  and  taught  that  carp 
were  vegetarians  and  slept  in  the  mud  all  winter.  His  next  volume 
should  be  entitled,  "  What  I  don't  Know  About  Carp  Culture,"  then  if  he 
gets  somebody  else  to  write  it,  the  book  with  his  egotism  left  out  will  be 
readable. 

The  following  article,  written  for  American  Carp  Culture,  Nov.,  1886, 
by  Chas.  W.  Smiley,  Washington,  D.  C.,  Ed.  Bulletin  of  the  United 
States  Fish  Commission,  covers  the  subject  completely.  From  many 
experiments  under  it  we  know  it  to  be  correct: 

"When  the  adult  is  nearing  the  spawning  time,  the  ripening  of  the  ova 
produces  a  broadened  appearance  in  the  female,  which  is  sufficient  to 
enable  most  any  one  to  distinguish  the  sex.  It  is  necessary,  however,  to 
be  able  to  distinguish  them  at  a  much  earlier  age,  and  this,  although  not 
generally  understood,  is  declared  by  experienced  fish  culturists  to  present 
but  little  difficulty.  Dr.  Hessel,  superintendent  of  the  United  States 
Government  ponds,  scarcely  ever  fails  to  identify  the  sexes,  although  he 
declares  his  inability  to  describe  in  words,  the  manner  in  which  he  does 
it.  The  German  carp  culturists,  however,  have  distinctly  stated  their 
method. 

Horak,  in  a  work  published  1869,  and  entitled  Die  Teichwirthschaft 
mit  besonderer  Ruecksicht  auf  das  suedliche  Boehmen.  JSin  populares 
Handbuchfuer  Teichwirthe,  Fischer  eibedienstete  und  Freunde  der  Fisch- 
zucht,  by  Wenzel  Horak,  says:  "Fishermen  who  are  not  able  to  deter- 
mine the  sexes  of  the  fish  at  once,  are  in  the  habit  of  squeezing  the  geni- 
tal parts  until  they  yield  either  milt  or  roe.  This  method  is  very  injuri- 
ous to  the  production  of  young  fish.  An  experienced  pond  culturist  wiH, 
at  the  first  glance,  distinguish  a  male  from  a  female  carp,  even  when  they 
are  only  one  year  old.  The  milter  or  male  fish,  has  a  depression  or  con- 
cave place  in  its  genital  parts,  while  the  spawner,  or  female  fish,  has  a 
protuberance  or  convex  place." 

Carl  Nicklas,  perhaps  the  most  skilled  carp  culturist  at  present  living 
in  Germany,  indorses  the  above  quotation  from  Horak,  and  adds:  "The 
aperture  of  the  genital  orifice  also  seems  to  be  somewhat  larger  and  red- 
der in  the  female  than  in  the  male.  It  is  not  very  difficult  to  distinguish 
the  male  from  the  female  carp;  still  it  may  require  a  little  practice." 
Prof.  B.  Benecke,  of  Konigsberg,  says:  "As  a  general  rule  the  belly  ef  the 
apawner  is  broader  and  rounder;  the  genital  aperture  is  larger  and 


PRACTICAL   CARP   CULTURE.  97 

reddish,  and  has  thick  lips,  while  in  the  male  it  forms  a  narrow  slit. 

Apparently  without  any  knowledge  of  these  German  authorities, 
Geo.  M.  Ramsey,  M.  D.,  of  Clockey,  Pa.,  writing  under  date  of  November 
22,  1883,  says:  "I  have  discovered  how  to  distinguish  the  sex  of  German 
carp  at  all  seasons  of  the  year.  By  the  inspection  of  the  female  carp  a 
small  fleshy  protuberance,  that  pouts  a  very  little,  will  be  seen  in  front 
of  the  vent,  whereas,  in  the  male  carp  the  same  is  slightly  depressed  or 
sunken  rather  than  protuberant.  On  examination  each  fish  should  be 
held  up  to  the  light  in  the  same  position,  back  downward/'  Evidently 
Dr.  Ramsey  has  made  an  independent  discovery  of  what  was  already 
known  in  Germany." 

SPAWNING. 

Some  culturists  state  that  their  carp  have  spawned  twice  in  one  sea- 
son. The  time  between  these  spawnings  being  from  three  weeks  to  four 
months.  We  do  not  doubt  the  truthfulness  of  the  persons  making  these 
statements,  but  we  do  doubt  that  the  same  female  carp  develops  and 
ripens  two  sets  of  eggs  the  same  season.  In  our  opinion  the  facts  are 
these:  The  deposition  of  the  eggs 'when  once  begun  may  be  delayed,  by 
a  change  of  weather,  or  a  change  of  temperature  in  the  water,  even  after 
the  carp  have  been  thus  engaged  for  a  part  of  several  days,  they  usually 
begin  early  in  the  morning  and  continue  until  about  noon,  but  when  thus 
interrupted  they  very  rarely  run  over  three  weeks,  until  their  work  is 
finished.  Thus  the  same  carp  might  be  observed  at  their  work  a  half  a 
dozen  of  times  in  that  time,  but  it  is  all  one  set  of  ova.  The  longer  time 
of  four  months  may  be  explained  by  the  fact  that  it  was  a  different  set  of 
carp  that  engaged  in  the  work.  The  different  ages  of  the  carp,  and  the 
opportunities  of  growth  and  development  the  former  season,  would 
reconcile  the  difference  of  time  in  the  ripening  of  the  ova,  and  explain 
the  statement  that  carp  spawn  twice.  The  fact  being  that  different  sets 
of  carp  in  the  same  pond  spawned  in  parts  of  the  season  widely  separated. 

We  have  often  been  asked,  how  to  tell  when  carp  are  spawning?  You 
can't  make  any  mistake  about  it,  as  you  will  know  when  you  have  once 
seen  it.  The  female,  closely  pursued  by  the  male  or  males,  rushes  up 
among  the  grass  and  water-plants  at  the  edge  of  the  pond,  their  backs 
well  out  of  water,  and  tails  and  fins  a  flashing,  and  the  water  boiling 
around  about  them,  turning  and  doubling,  twisting  and  retreating,  only  to 
come  back  again  to  the  edge  with  another  rush.  If  everything  is  favora- 
ble this  is  continued  for  hours,  more  or  less  eggs  being  deposited  with 
every  rush  among  the  vegetation.  As  the  eggs  are  dropped  by  the  female 
the  following  male  rushing  in  the  same  course  milts  them.  The  eggs  are 
whitish  and  about  the  size  of  a  No.  6  shot,  are  adhesive  and  stick  to  float- 
ing objects,  such  as  the  leaves  of  water  plants,  etc.,  until  they  are  hatched, 
which  takes  from  three  to  ten  days,  according  to  temperature. 

HOW  TO  CATCH   CARP. 

They  are  good  biters  at  a  hook  and  are  very  garney  when  hooked.  We 
have  lived  within  two  miles  of  Lake  Erie  for  20  years,  and  have  taken 


98  PRACTICAL    CARP   CULTURE. 

nearly  all  kinds  of  fish  from  its  water,  as  well  as  from  the  waters  of  Lakes 
Huron,  Michigan,  and  Superior,  and  we  have  had  as  much  real  genuine 
sport  in  taking  carp  with  a  hook,  as  in  taking  any  other  fish.  We  have 
had  them  straighten  a  hook  and  break  a  line  many  a  time.  It  requires 
good  equipment  and  skill  to  land  carp  that  weighs  six  pounds  and  upward. 

For  bait  we  have  used  worms,  grubs,  minnows,  crusts  of  bread,  etc. 
Where  bread  is  used  it  must  be  kneaded  into  a  pasty  mass  about  the  hook. 
A  small  piece  of  bloody  meat  makes  a  good  bait.  One  of  the  correspond- 
ents in  American  Carp  Culture  says:  "To  catch  large  carp  take  grains  of 
corn  and  place  on  the  hook."  We  have  never  tried  this,  and  cannot 
speak  from  experience. 

Where  larger  numbers  are  wanted  than  could  be  conveniently  taken 
by  the  hook,  many  traps  and  devices  have  been  resorted  to,  but  the  seine  is 
the  standby. 

DIFFICULT  TO  SEINE. 

They  are,  however,  very  cunning  and  difficult  to  seine.  This  is  par- 
ticularly true  of  the  larger  sized  fish.  Never  be  discouraged  with  the  first 
haul,  for  while  the  water  is  clear  enough  for  them  to  see  the  seine,  great 
numbers  will  avoid  it.  If  they  don't  succeed  in  passing  around  it  or 
jumping  over  it,  they  will  stick  their  heads  in  the  mud  until  it  drags 
over  them.  When  the  water  is  once  roiled,  however,  the  hauls  of  the  seine 
will  be  more  successful. 

FEEDING  TIME. 

The  part  of  the  day  when  carp  feed  naturally  is  at  night  and  early 
morning.  It  is  therefore  the  best  time  to  take  them  with  a  hook,  and  the 
evening  is  the  best  time  to  give  them  food. 

CONCUSSION. 

Giant  powder  and  dynamite  have  been  frequently  used  by  the  lawless 
in  our  public  streams  and  fishing  places  to  secure  in  :  'iort  order  a  big 
haul  of  fish.  Its  use  for  such  purposes  in  many  of  tho  states  has  been 
made  a  misdemeanor  and"  crime.  The  effect  of  the  concussion  of  the  dis- 
charge of  such  a  missle  under  the  water  kills  the  fish,  and  many  of  them 
float  on  the  surface  of  the  water,  and  are  then  gathered  up  by  the  mis- 
creants. This  has  even  happened  to  the  carp  pond  of  one  of  our  corre- 
spondents. 

We  make  mention  of  this  simply  to  get  at  the  deadly  effect  of  concus- 
sion. In  cutting  an  air  hole  in  the  ice,  another  correspondent  killed  two 
fine  carp  with  the  blows  of  his  ax  on  the  ice.  It  is  an  old  trick  of  hunters 
to  strike  the  ice  above  water  animals  and  so  kill  them.. 

Concussion  then,  in  our  opinion,  will  explain  some  of  the  losses  of 
carp  in  winter  time,  that  are  otherwise  imexplainable.  The  raising  or 
lowering  of  the  water  in  a  pond  that  is  ice-bound  will  frequently  cause  a 
heaving  or  settling  of  the  ice,  either  of  which  will  result  in  a  concussion 
of  greater  or  less  force,  which  cannot  but  affect  the  fish.  The  falling  of 
trees  on  the  ice,  the  throwing  of  heavy  bodies  on  it,  is  to  be  avoided.  The 


PRACTICAL   CARP   CUI/fiUtE. 99 

cutting  of  holes  in  the  ice  should  be  done'* ca/etiill^L  ''T^e  tt&k irjg  yV'.ice 
from  the  pond  is  not  necessarily  injurious,  after  the  first  hole  is  cut,  as  in 
sawing  the  ice,  there  is  little  or  no  jar  and  little  or  no  concussion  as  a  con- 
sequence, and  this  looses  its  force  where  there  is  open  water. 

WAVES  ON  PONDS. 

Where  ponds  lie  exposed  to  the  action  of  the  wind,  waves  of  consider- 
able size  and  force  are  frequently  formed,  even  on  ponds  containing  only 
two  or  three  acres,  and  on  larger  sheets  of  water  the  waves  are  propor- 
tionately large.  If  left  to  work  their  own  way  they  wash  the  banks,  and 
unless  the  banks  are  exceptionally  strong  there  is  a  possibility  of  a  leak 
being  sprung,  when  you  are  not  thinking  of  it. 

A  simple  and  inexpensive  protection  against  the  action  of  the  waves 
is  made  of  poles,  from  4  to  7  inches  in  diameter  at  the  butt.  These  poles 
are  trimmed  of  the  branches  and  laid  on  the  water  next  the  embankments, 
the  top  of  one  pole  being  withed  or  bolted  to  the  butt  of  another,  until  the 
poles  extend  along  the  entire  line  of  embankments,  then  stakes  are  driven 
just  beyond  the  poles  to  prevent  their  being  carried  out  in  the  pond.  The 
action  of  the  waves  is  then  on  the  poles  instead  of  on  the  embankments. 


NY,MPH^KA  ODORATA— SWEET  SCENTED  WHITE  WATER  LILLY. 


MISCELLANEOUS  APPENDIX. 


MISCELLANEOUS  APPENDIX. 

The  purpose  of  this  appendix  is  to  place  the  reader  in  direct  com- 
munion with  some  of  the  persons  who  have  succeeded  in  carp  culture, 
and  many  of  them  beyond  their  highest  expectations.  Their  inexpensive 
ponds,  and  the  simple  methods  by  which  they  attained  success,  cannot 
but  be  interesting,  instructive,  and  encouraging  to  others.  Our  difficulty 
in  compiling  this  portion  of  our  work  arose  from  the  superabundance  of 
material.  In  selecting  from  it  our  sole  desire  has  been  to  serve  the  very 
best  interests  of  our  readers.  From  many  letters  then  we  have  taken  only 
a  brief  extract,  touching  some  particular  phase  of  the  subject,  while 
others  we  present  in  almost  their  entirety.  Because  of  several  subjects 
touched  in  the  same  letter,  it  was  very  rrard  to  classify  them.  But  each 
one  will  speak  for  itself  and  all  are  worthy  of  reading. 

It  is  but  just  to  say  that  the  writers  of  these  letters  are  all  of  them 
subscribers  to  our  monthly  publication,  "American  Carp  Culture,"  and 
all  of  them  acknowledge  the  great  aid  they  have  received  from  it.  Where 
not  otherwise  specially  stated  each  of  the  following  communications  was 
addressed  to  us: 


INCREASE  OF  CARP— PRICES— HARDIHOOD,    ETC. 

MT.  MORRIS,  Pa.,  May €7,  1885. 

My  fish  are  doing  fine.  Drained  Nos.  2  and  o ;  No.  2  contained  eighteen 
three  years  old.  No.  3  had  twenty-four  two  years  old  in  it.  We  took  from 
these  two  ponds  of  last  year's  spawn  3,634  fish  by  actual  count.  I  did  not 
drain  my  large  pond,  No.  1 ;  in  this  pond  I  have  my  four  and  five  years 
old  fish.  We  are  cooking  them  pretty  freely  now.  Some  say  that  carp  is 
unfit  to  eat?1  (sour  grapes) ;  they  are  too  lazy  to  build  a  pond.  I  am  well 
pleased  with  the  taste  of  my  fish  and  all  that  eat  them  are  delighted. 

J.  W.  LONG. 


BEDFORD,  Ohio,  June  13.  1885. 

Nearly  every  one  in  constructing  ponds  finds  he  lacks  something  or  has 
made  some  mistake ;  I  have  three  ponds  and  have  sold  2, 000  fish  this  spring. 

J.  C.  ALEXANDER. 


MARTINSBURG,  O.,  October  20, 1885. 

I  drained  one  of  my  ponds  the  16th,  and  had,  actual  count,  4,323  young 
fish,  besides  several  hundred  that  got  through  strainer  box.    We  had  for 


104  PRACTICAL   CARP   CULTURE. 

dinner  three  two-pound  fish,  and  all  said  they  never  ate  better  fish.  They 
have  all  grown  beyond  expectation.  Young  fish  were  from  three  to  eight 
inches  long.  IRA  H.  EWART. 

BLAKKSBURG,  Towa,  March  25,  1886. 

Complaint  has  been  made  of  carp  not  living  through  our  long,  cold 
winters,  and  that  they  are  a  tender  fish,  difficult  to  winter,  but  I  know  them 
to  be  as  hardy  as  we  have  in  this  part  of  Iowa.  I  have  two  ponds  stocked 
with  carp,  and  last  fall  I  planted  450  young  carp  in  those  ponds,  that  had 
been  shipped  500  miles  in  November,  and  they  wintered  all  right.  I  have 
the  same  old  spawners  that  came  safe  through  the  winter,  while  the  native 
fish,  grown  by  farmers  in  ponds  along  the  creek,  are  dead — such  as  bull- 
heads, sunfish,  suckers,  red  horse,  chubs — all  our  native  kinds  of  fish. 
Further,  I  have  not  heard  of  a  single  carp  dying  this  winter  that  was  not 
hurt  in  handling  in  the  fall.  The  carp  is  just  the  fish  for  the  farmers  to 
grow.  W.  A.  DAY. 


UTOPIA,  Texas,  May  24,  1886. 

I  built  me  a  pond  in  February  which  covers  two  acres.  I  cleaned  the 
small  brush  off  and  broke  the  land  with  turn  plow,  then  harrowed  it  and 
leveled  the  dam.  Not  a  living  thing  in  pond  except  a  few  trees.  On  the 
9th  day  of  April  I  put  three  German  carp  in.  I  saw  no  more  of  them  till 
lately.  There  were  hogs,  cattle,  34  ducks,  23  geese,  and  turtles,  snakes, 
crawfish,  and  frogs ;  all  went  in  all  the  time.  On  the  22d  day  of  May,  by 
accident  we  found  a  young  carp  in  a  little  neck  of  the  main  pond  ;  we  then 
began  taking  out,  as  I  intended  turning  the  water  off,  to  stop  some  holes 
that  leaked  water;  we  picked  with  our  hands  324  carp  three  inches  long; 
don't  know  what  is  in  the  main  pond  ;  will  drain  pond  to-morrow.  Those 
fish  had  be%n  laid,  hatched  and  raised  to  that  size  in  forty-three  days.  I 
am  600  miles  west  from  mouth  of  Mississippi  river,  1,500  feet  above  sea 
level,  in  the  mountains.  B.  F.  BIGGS. 


PULASKI,  Tenn.,  April,  1887. 

I  have  four  fish  ponds  with  2,800  carp  that  will  spawn  next  season. 
Started  eighteen  months  ago  with  five  carp — three  male  and 'two  female; 
have  from  them  handled  and  counted  4,000. 

THOMAS  S.  PITTA RD. 


McPHBBSON,  Kans.,  April,  1887. 

Got  twenty  carp  from  Washington  in  November,  1882;  they  have  never 
been  fed;  have  multiplied  wonderfully.  There  are  many  six-pounders 
among  them,  and  small  fry  too  numerous  to  mention. 

E.  C.  WELLS. 


WEST  RICHFIELD,  O.,  September  20,  1887. 
In  December,  1882,  I  received  my  first  carp;  lost  all  but  eight.     In  Oc- 


PRACTICAL   CARP  CULTURE.  105 

tober,  1884,  I  drew  off  my  pond;  found  four  of  the  original  stock  and  thirty 
about  six  inches  long.  In  October,  1885,  drew  the  pond  again ;  found  four 
of  the  original  plant,  one  of  which  weighed  eight  pounds,  and  twenty-six 
others  eighteen  inches  long  and  bushels  of  small  fry  from  two  to  three 
inches  long.  My  four-year-olds  spawned  in  May  this  year,  my  three-yearn 
in  June.  They  come  and  eat  like  a  lot  of  hogs  when  fed. 

.1.  W.  THORP. 

\VOODBUFF,  S.  C.,  October  29,  1887. 

I  this  year  raised  1,100  fry  in  a  pond  about  35x40  feet.  I  also  lost  by  a 
breaking  dam  137  yearlings  and  I  suppose  1,000  fry.  My  experience  in- 
clines me  to  the  opinion  that  one  should  have  ponds  enough  to  alternate 
winter  and  summer,  leaving  each  pond  expose'd  to  sun  and  air  and  to  take 
on  vegetation  half  the  season.  Fish  raising  is  a  success  if  given  the  atten- 
tion that  pigs  and  chickens  are  given.  L.  C.  EZELL.  . 


OXOVILLE,  N.  Y.,  November,  1887. 

This  is  my  first  season  in  carp  culture.  The  muskrats  let  the  water  out 
of  my  pond  and'  cost  me  2,000  or  3,000  fish.  1  lost  2,000  in  transportation, 
sold  2,500  more,  and  have  about  3,000  stored  in  winter  quarters.  The  King- 
fishers fished  my  pond  all  summer.  From  twelve  two-year  old  breeders  I 
have  raised  between  10,000  and  12,000  fish. 

E.  L.  VALENTINE. 


CORSICANA,  Mo.,  November  23,  1887. 

I  have  just  drained  out  one  of  my  ponds,  ( I  have  five  of  them)  and 
taken  out  fish  23  inches  in  length,  that  weigh  3)^  pounds;  they  are  only 
one  year  old.  I  have  about  ten  acres  in  ponds.  I  have  an  hydraulic 
ram  that  furnishes  one  of  my  ponds;  under  a  twelve-foot  head  it 
will  throw  water  fifty  feet  high ;  it  runs  fifteen  gallons  per  minute ;  I  think 
the  German  carp  is  the  best  fish  yet. 

L.  J.  BLANKENSHIP. 


PUEBLO,  COL.,  Dec.  21,1887. 

I  drew  down  my  pond  October  16,  got  everything  ready,  made  a  haul 
with  the  seine  and  caught  about  3,000  fish;  would  have  weighed  about 
1 ,500  pounds.  They  then  had  two  years'  growth.  I  took  out  about  300  pounds, 
turned  the  seine  over  and  let  them  go.  I  peddled  out  what  I  had.  They 
sold  very  readily  and  people  called  for  more.  I  could  have  sold  every  fish 
in  my  pond.  The  fish  should  have  been  larger,  but  they  were  stunted  the 
first  year,  The  party  of  whom  I  bought  the  yearlings,  told  me  they  were 
stunted  as  he  raised  over  50,000  in  a  pond  100  feet  square.  I  expect  to  turn 
out  a  fine  lot  of  fish  next  fall.  My  last  spring  spawn  are  nearly  as  large 
as  the  two-summer  fish.  I  cannot  tell  how  many  I  have  of  them  but  have 
plenty.  I  am  raising  carp  for  money  and  intend  to  make  a  business  of  it 
and  am  well  pleased  and  feel  sure  of  success.  I  have  nowtabout  20  acres 
of  water  surface  and  eight  acres  will  be  from  three  to  12  inches  deep  and 


106  PRACTICAL   CARP   CULTURE. 

will  make  great  feeding  ground.  T  do  not  think  the  Kingfisher  does  any 
harm.  He  thins  out  the  top  minnows  which  are  always  on  top  of  the 
water.  My  carp  do  not  come  to  the  top  of  the  water  unless  the  sun  shines 
bright  and  no  wind.  J.  J.  THOMAS. 


WAUSAN,  Wis.,  Feb.  11,  1888. 

I  certainly  should  think  many  claims  made  for  the  carp  "fishey," 
had  I  not  had  some  experience  with  them,  and  will  candidly  say  that  the 
most  extravagant  claims  made  for  them  comes  fairly  within  the  limits  of 
possibilities  and  truth.  Last  year  I  raised  1,250  young  fry,  from  2  to  4 
inches,  from  11  breeders  in  a  ditch  4  feet  wide  and  about  20  rods  long  with 
water  from  1  inch  to  18  inches  deep,  and  cattle  and  hogs  occupying  fully 
one-third  this  length  in  common  with  the  carp,  which  made  the  water  so 
muddy  that  no  fish  could  be  seen.  Don't  think  this  is  the  home  I  intend- 
ed for  my  carp;  no,  I  was  going  to  have  a  nice  little  pond  of  about  an 
acre,  but  the  dry  season  prevented  anything  but  the  ditch  from  filling. 
And  now  after  drawing  my  pond  ( or  rather  my  ditch )  and  finding  all  my 
old  fish  (more  than  double  the  size,)  and  the  1,250  young  ones;  I 
can  take  any  carp  yarn  you  can  spin.  One  thing  more  that  I  have  not  seen 
in  your  paper.  It  was  late  in  the  fall  when  I  drew  off  the  water  and  it 
froze  quite  hard  that  night,  and  the  next  morning  I  found  several  fry 
frozen  in  the  ice  in  a  small  hole  back  some  distance  from  the  collector. 
These  I  thought,  of  course,  were  dead,  but  I  put  them  in  a  pail  with  water, 
and  to  my  surprise,  when  the  ice  was  thawed  enough  to  release  them  they 
swam  around  as  if  nothing  unusual  had  happened.  A  few  were  kept  in 
water  to  see  if  they  had  received  any  injury  by  freezing;  they  are  well  and 
lively  to-day,  fully  proving  that  carp  can  be  frozen  in  solid  ice  without  any 
injury.  R.  E.  PARCHER. 


FRENCHTOWN,  PA.,  Feb.  27, 1888. 

1  have  a  carp  pond  of  \yz  acre.  About  18  months  ago  1  first  put  in  110 
carp  that  were  about  4  inches  long,  and  10  months  ago  I  put  in  7  spawners 
that  were  from  22  to  30  inches  lone.  Last  October  I  drained  the  water  off 
and  was  surprised  to  find  more  than  50,000  little  carp  that  were  from  1}£ 
to  7  inches  long;  and  the  110  small  carp  that  I  put  in  18  months  ago  meas- 
ured 16  and  18  inches  long.  On  the  day  I  drew  the  water  from  my  pond  I 
sold  $95  worth  of  the  small  fish.  I  assorted  them  in  sizes  under  3  inches, 
over  3  and  under  4j^  inches,  over  4>£  inches  and  under  6  inches,  and  sold 
them  at  proportionate  prices. 

1       JOSEPH  BRUNOT. 


SALE  OF  CARP  FOR  TABLE  USE. 

EDINBURG,  Ind.,  December  12,  1886. 

I  am  selling  carp  for  food  fish.     This  last  fall  and  winter,  and  up  to 
the  present  time,  I  have  disposed  of  about  2,000  pounds  and  have  yet  about 


PRACTICAL  CARP  CULTURE.  107 

5,000  pounds  on  hand,  which  I  am  holding  for  the  Lenten  season,  when  I 
expect  a  readier  sale  and  higher  price  for  them.  What  I  have  sold  have 
given  good  satisfaction,  except  a  few  that  were  small,  not  weighing  more 
than  one  pound  each.  I  would  recommend  no  one  to  offer  carp  in  market 
under  two  pounds  in  weight;  three  pounds  and  upwards  would  be  better. 
I  sell  at  from  12>£  to  15  cents  per  pound.  V.  STILLABOWER. 


DORR.ANCE,  Kans  ,  March  6,  1887. 

My  pond  is  only  250x25  feet,  with  a  spring,  which  is  very  rare  in  this 
part.  I  sold  a  good  many  fish  for  table  use,  last  October,  for  fifteen  cents 
a  pound,  and  folks  come  to  my  place  to  get  more;  they  say  they  never  ate 
any  fish  that  were  as  good.  In  January  last,  when  the  mercury  was  about 
20  degrees  below  zero  my  under  drain  got  damaged  and  let  the  water  out, 
clear  to  the  bottom.  I  could  not  get  to  the  fish  as  there  was  eighteen 
inches  of  ice;  and  I  never  expected  to  see  any  of  them  alive  again,  as  there 
was  very  little  water  coming  and  I  could  not  stop  the  leak  for  three  days. 
But  when  the  ice  broke  up  I  found  all  alive,  with  the  exceptions  of  one,  a 
four-pounder.  The  rest  were  all  half  that  size. 

W.  BUNKER. 


WAVERLY,  Ohio,  Jan,  7,  1888. 

Last  March  (1887)  I  sold  an  express  load  of  carp  in  the  rough  for 
cents  per  pound.    They  sold  like  hot  cakes.     I  had  but  one  complaint  and 
that  man  said  they  were  too  fat.  W.  B.  LEE. 


CATCHING  CARP. 

CLAYTON,  Mo.,  November  8,  1885. 

Make  a  thick  mush  of  corn  meal,  put  plenty  of  salt  in  beforehand, 
cook  it  well,  take  pieces  of  cheese  cloth  1}£  to  3  inches  square  (which  is  as 
large  as  can  go  in  the  fishes  mouth)  tie  the  mush  up  in  this,  pass  the  hook 
through  the  cloth  to  the  inside,  being  careful  not  to  let  it  come  out  on  the 
opposite  side  of  the  ball,  fasten  lines  to  your  hook  about  2%  feet  long,  take 
a  small  wire  long  enough  to  reach  along  the  dam  of  the  pond  or  along  the 
deepest  and  straightest  edge  of  the  pond.  Tie  your  lines  to  this  wire  at 
about  four  feet  apart,  and  stretch  your  wire  so  that  the  bait  on  the  hooks 
will  just  touch  the  sloping  side  of  the  dam  or  bank.  I  have  found  this 
place  mostly  frequented  by  carp  in  search  of  food,  and  the  bait  being  on 
the  ground  and  not  suspended  in  the  water,  they  can  better  find  and  take 
hold  of  it,  or  in  feeding  they  get  it  in  their  mouth.  I  use  the  bass  hook 
for  this  purpose;  care  must  be  taken  in  landing  them,  as  they  are  very 
tender  and  will  tear  out  their  mouth.  I  have  caught  several  that  weighed 
from  2>£  to  3  pounds  in  this  way.  E.  B.  BROUSTER. 


MOUNT  UNION,  July  19,  1886. 
To  catch  carp  take  au  old  bone-dust  or  coffee  sack,  a  hoop  from. a  bar- 


108  PRACTICAL   CARP   CULTURE. 

rel,  fasten  it  inside  of  the  sack  at  the  bottom  and  another  one  at  the  top  of 
the  sack,  with  a  short  pole  for  a  handle;  put  some  corn,  wheat  or  bread  in 
the  sack  and  sink  it  under  water.  You  can  catch  fish  of  any  size  in  it.  I 
took  four  in  this  manner  to-day;  had  orieVor  dinner;  weight  2j^  pounds; 
very  good  fish.  CHAS.  F.  JOHNSON. 


BROOKLYN  VILLAGE,  O.,  August  22,  1886. 

To  catch  carp  in  small  ponds  have  a  box  (of  size  to  suit)  with  bottom 
fixed  to  feed  the  carp  upon,  and  have  six  or  eight  inches  open  at  the  bot- 
tom of  the  sides  for  them  to  enter,  and  the  top  to  come  out  of  the  water 
with  pulley  and  rope  to  raise  and  lower  the  box,  and  on  the  inside  have 
another  box  to  let  down  and  close  up  the  opening  for  the  entrance  of  the 
carp  and  if  thoy  are  in,  and  when  the  water  passes  out  you  take  out  those 
you  want  and  put  boxes  and  fish  back  again. 

JAMES  GAY. 


BROWN'S  VALLEY,  Ind.,  February  21,  1888. 

To  catch  large  carp  and  not  small  ones,  bait  with  corn  after  being 
soaked  in  water  for  ten  or  twelve  hours ;  put  the  hook  through  the  point  of 
the  grain  and  throw  out  along  the  edge  of  the  pond  at  sundown;  line  tied 
to  limber  switches  stuck  in  the  bank;  go  for  your  fish  in  the  morning. 

PETER  JAMES. 


CARP  IN  MINERAL,  SULPHUR  AND  SALT  WATER. 

IN   SULPHUR  WATER. 

WOODS  CROSS,  Utah,  June  30,  1885. 

I  have  a  carp  pond  containing  one  and-a-half  acres.  December  8,  1884, 
I  received  twenty  German  carp  from  Washington.  Eighteen  I  placed  in 
the  pond  for  the  winter,  and  two  I  put  in  a  tank  holding  about  150 gallons, 
fed  by  an  artesian  well.  The  water  contains  a  little  sulphur  and  iron,  with 
a  temperature  of  54  degrees  Fahr.  They  wintered  all  right,  although  the 
prevalent  idea  is  that  water  containing  mineral  is  injurious  to  the  carp. 

JACOB  GIERISCH. 


IN   SALT   WATER. 

BLTJE,  Utah,  March  31,  1886. 

December,  1884,  I  received  twenty-one  minnow  carp,  mirror  variety, 
of  United  States  Fish  Commission.  Kept  them  in  a  pond  10x15  feet  the 
remainder  of  the  winter.  Early  in  the  spring  I  found  that  they  had  grown 
but  very  little,  and  removed  them  to  a  pond  of  about  two  acres,  made  by 
draining  a  swampy  piece  of  slough  land  and  turning  a  mountain  spring 
into  it.  Late  last  fall  I  drained  this  pond  and  got  thirteen  (muskrats  and 
snakes  got  the  other  eight)  carp  measuring  about  fifteen  inches  in  length, 
and  weighing  from  two  to  three  pounds  each.  There  was  a  thin  scale  of 


PRACTICAL    CARP  CUI/TURR.  109 

ice  on  this  pond  when  I  drained  it,  and  as  the  water  lowered  about  half  of 
the  fish  tore  more  or  less  of  their  scales  off  running  through  this  scale  ice. 
I  then  placed  them  in  a  deep  pond  which  I  had  made  for  them  to  winter  in 
and  fed  them  some.  They  did  not  *•  hole  up,"  but  were  feeding  all  winter 
whenever  the  pond  was  open.  This  spring  the  thirteen  are  all  alive,  but 
the  ones  that  were  hurt  in  the  ice  have  fungus  growth  bad.  The  others 
look  fine.  None  of  them  have  grown  much  this  winter.  I  have  made  a 
good  hatching  pond  and  placed  them  in  it,  hoping  to  get  some  young  this 
season.  During  the  winter  I  bought  fifty  young  and  three  spawners,  scale 
variety,  shipped  from  Ohio.  The  express  on  the  lot  was  about  twelve  dol- 
lars. They  all  arrived  in  good  order,  and  I  kept  them  by  themselves.  I 
have  on  my  place  a  large,- deep  pond  of  very  clear,  very  salt  water,  with 
lots  of  rushes  around  the  sides,  is  fed  by  large  salt  spring,  and  is  full  of 
small  wild  fish  and  snails.  As  an  experiment  I  placed  one  of  my  small 
carp  in  a  small  pail  of  this  clear  salt  water,  and  changing  the  water  daily 
kept  him  in  it  until  I  was  satisfied  that  he  would  live  and  do  well  in  this 
salt  pond.  I  intend,  with  giant  powder,  to  kill  the  small  wild  fish  of  this 
pond,  and  after  my  mirror  carp  spawn  shall  rub  the  fungus  off  the  affected 
fish  and  place  them  in  the  salt  pond.  Will  it  kill  or  cure  them  ?  And  will 
not  fish  be  firmer  and  finer-flavored  in  the  salt  water  than  in  a  sluggish 
fresh  water  pond  ?  My  salt  pond  never  freezes. 


IN   MINERAL   WATER. 

MORENCI,  Mich.,  March  15,  1888. 

My  neighbor,  Mr.  T.  T.  Baker,  has  a  pond  supplied  by  what  is  known 
here  and  in  Northwestern  Ohio,  as  a  fountain.  That  is  a  hole  bored  in  the 
ground,  a  gaspipe  with  a  strainer  inserted,  from  which  the  water  flows. 
The  water  appears  to  be  impregnated  with  iron,  or  at  least  everything  with 
which  it  comes  in  contact  becomes  the  color  of  iron  rust.  His  pond  is  made 
by  excavating  a  ditch  around  a  piece  of  land,  leaving  the  center  covered 
with  the  native  sod,  and  raising  a  bank  outside  and  letting  the  water  in 
until  the  center  is  overflowed  a  foot  or  more  and  the  water  in  the  ditch  is 
four  or  five  feet  deep.  It  covers  about  100  square  rods  of  ground.  In  the 
fall  of  1885  he  stocked  it  with  a  few  spawners  and  100  or  more  small  fry. 
In  the  summer  of  1886  they  spawned  in  May,  and  again  later,  and  by  fall, 
1887,  the  pond  was  full  of  fish.  In  1887  he  commenced  to  use  them,  catch- 
ing all  of  the  first  large  ones,  and  some  besides.  The  ice  has  been  off  his 
pond  for  some  time,  while  the  ice  on  my  pond,  which  is  fed  by  a  small 
brook,  is  a  foot  thick.  Last  week  he  caught  a  mirror  carp,  with  a  hook, 
weighing  over  four  pounds  and  it  must  have  been  one  of  the  small  ones  put 
in  at  first,  as  his  spawners  were  all  scale  carp. 

A.  COMBS. 

GREAT  VITALITY  OF  CARP. 

EIGHT   HOURS   OUT   OF   WATER. 

CHARLOTTESVILI.E,  Va.,  March  18,  1884. 
On  Saturday  evening  I  caught  with  a  hook  a  carp  which  would  weigh 


110  PRACTICAL   CARP   CULTURE. 

about  four  pounds.  I  put  him  in  my  bath-tub  filled  with  water.  On  yes- 
terday, about  8  o'clock  a.  m.,  1  put  the  carp  in  a  small  box,  surrounding  it 
with  wet  moss,  and  forwarded  to  Lynchburg  by  express.  It  reached  there 
about  4  p.  m.,  and  I  learn  this  morning  from  my  friend  to  whom  it  was 
sent  that  when  taken  out  and  placed  in  a  tub  it  was  as  lively  as  could  be. 
My  family  ate  a  small  carp  Sunday  morning  and  thought  it  vey  good. — 
[From  a  letter  to  C.  W.  Smiley.] 

R.  T.  W.  DUKE. 


FIVE   HOURS   OUT   OF   WATER. 

EDINBURG,  Ind.,  December  12,  1886. 

Sent  eight  beautiful  carp  for  eating  purpose's  to  Enos  B.  Reed,  Indian- 
apolis, Ind.,  packed  in  dry  excelsior.  They  were  at  least  five  hours  out  of 
water,  and  when  received  by  Mr.  Reed  they  were  alive  and  kicking.  Well, 
he  did  not  eat  them,  but  put  them  in  his  carp  pond,  where' they  are  doing 
well.  I  merely  „  state  the  above  facts  to  show  the  tenacity  of  life  in  the 
earp. 

V,  STILL ABOWER. 


IN    A   PINT  OF    WATER. 

A  small  lot  of  carp  was  sent  to  C.  P.  Jones,  Carysbrook,  Va,,  leaving 
Washington  on  the  night  of  November  20,  1886,^at  10  p.  m.  These  carp 
were  on  the  way  over  five  days,  they  having  beeii  delayed  in  Columbia. 
Mr.  Jones,  who  lives  twelve  miles  from  that  point,  on  the  Rivanna  river, 
depended  on  the  captain  of  a  boat  running  between  those  points  to  bring 
the  carp.  The  captain  failed  for  several  days  to  do  so,  and  the  carp  lay- 
over in  the  express  room  without  a  change  of  water.  After  this  delay  they 
were  brough  up  the  river  in  an  open  boat  thirteen  miles,  with  the  ther- 
mometer at  23  degrees  Fahrenheit.  When  Mr.  Jones  opened  the  bucket, 
December  4,  he  thought  the  fish  were  all  dead,  as  there  was  no  signs  of  life 
and  only  a  pint  of  water,  the  rest  having  been  turned  to  ice ;  but  noticing 
a  slight  movement  of  the  gills,  he  transferred  the  fish  into  tepid  water  and 
in  thirty  minutes  they  were  all  lively.  He  then  kept  them  over  Sunday  in 
the  house,  during  which  time  none  died  or  showed  any  injurious  effects. 
This  display  of  vitality  is  doubtless  due  to  the  cold  weather  at  the  time  the 
flah  were  shipped  and  during  their  stay  in  Columbia.— Bulletin  U.  8.  F.  C. 


ROLLED   UP  IN   A   NEWSPAPER. 

GATES  MILLS,  O.,  May  1,  1887. 

The  tenacity  of  life  in  the  carp  is  wonderful.  Thomas  Baxter,  a  neigh- 
bor of  mine,  recently  took  a  carp  from  his  pond  and  laid  it  on  the  grass  for 
an  hour,  it  was  then  rolled  in  a  newspaper  and  carried  a  journey  of  ten 
miles,  which  occupied  two  hours  more.  When  taken  out  of  the  paper  it 


PRACTICAL    CARP    CULTURE. 


appeared  to  be  alive  and  when  placed  iu  a  dish  of  water  splashed  the  water 
over  the  floor  and  swam  about  apparently  little  worse  for  its  journey. 


DO  NOT  HIBERNATE. 

CATCHING  CARP  THROUGH  THE  ICE. 

SHELBY,  O.,  January  25,  1886. 

I  constructed  a  pond  of  about  an  acre  late  in  the  fall  of  1884,  put  in  126 
young  carp.  They  did  no  good.  Again  iu  April  last  I  put  in  200  more. 
They  did  splendidly.  I  caught  some  in  the  fall  weighing  from  three  to 
four  pounds.  I  also  put  iu  the  pond  in  the  spring  six  brood  fish.  I  now 
have  plenty  young  fish  six  to  eight  inches  long,  being  twice  as  large  aa 
those  I  got  in  the  spring  for  stocking.  Do  carp  burrow  in  the  mud  in  win- 
ter? I  say  they  do  not,  as  the  following  will  show.  A  few  days  after  the 
cold  wave  we  had  in  December  last,  I  cut  a  hole  through  the  ice,  put  down 
baited  hook  and  caught  six,  some  small  and  some  large.  Again  on  Jan- 
uary 21  caught  with  hook  and  line  some  more.  Again  on  last  Wednes- 
day, January  20th,  I  cut  through  six  inches  of  ice  and  soon  caught  a  three- 
pound  fish  with  hook.  The  bottom  of  my  carp  pond  is  composed  of  muck 
and  sand,  so  carp  could  get  down  very  readily.  The  water  in  my  pond  is 
chiefly  surface  water.  My  experience  is  that  carp  in  mid  winter  lay  still 
on  the  bottom  and  in  the  deepest  part  of  the  pond.  My  pond  has  six  feet 
of  water.  I  find  I  can  only  catch  them  in  the  deepest  water  and  nowhere 
«lse.  If  carp  burrow  in  mud  in  winter,  how  can  they  be  caught  with  hook 
and  line.  If  any  doubt  let  them  coine  and  try  themselves. 

C.  C.  Los**. 


PftBHllfU-  THROUGH   THE   KJB. 

COLUMBIAN  A,  O.,  February  19,  1886. 

On  February  I2th  I  took  two  fifteen-iuch  carp  in  less  than  fifteen  min- 
utes out  of  four  feet  of  water  with  bait  hook  and  line,  through  a  hole  cut 
through  six  inches  of  ice;  mercury  34  degrees.  Again,  on  February  18; 
mercury  23  degrees.  No  hibernation  here.  As  to  the  different  types  of 
carp,  so  far  as  edible  quality  is  concerned,  we  consider  there  is  just  as  much 
difference  as  there  is  difference  in  beef  of  red,  white,  black  and  spotted 
bullocks.  But  when  it  comes  to  the  cleaning  we  prefer  the  full  scale,  they 
are  so  much  easier  cleaned,  one  great  advantage  in  their  favor.  As  to 
growth,  there  is  a  diversity  of  opinion;  in  my  experience  with  the  differ-  . 
ent  types,  should  place  it  in  favor  of  full  scale  carp. 

JAC.  KNOPP. 


IS   WARM    WATER   NECESSARY   FOR   CARP  TO  GROW   WELL? 

PRINCETON,  Ills.,  January  17,  1887. 

On  Christmas  day,  1884, 1  saw  six  large  spawners  swimming  abreast  in 
my  pond,  which  was  covered  with  heavy  ice,  except  a  small  place  ten  feet 
in  diameter  at  inlet.  Again  last  week  (January  13,  1886)  I  saw  through 


112  PRACTICAL,   CARP   CULTURE. 

clear  ice  ten  inches  thick,  and  frozen  within  a  few  inches  of  the  bottom, 
a  large  carp  which  darted  away  like  an  arrow  at  my  approach.  The  old 
theory  of  universal  hibernation  being  thus  disproven,  we  must  have  some 
other  to  accommodate  those  feliows  who  see  their  sleepy  (?)  fish  shooting 
around  in  the  winter  time.  All  animal  life  requires  is  oxygen  for  support. 
If  the  supply  of  oxygen  is  scant  the  animal  becomes  torpid,  sluggish. 
Precisely  so  with  the  carp.  If  a  pond  has  a  running  stream  supplying  it, 
a  given  number  of  carp  (depending  on  the  amount  of  flow),  will  get  enough 
oxygen  to  keep  up  a  normal  circulation,  and,  consequently,  will  not  hiber- 
nate, and  will  probably  take  food.  If  a  pond  is  pretty  well  stocked  with 
carp  and  covered  with  ice,  no  doubt  the  fish  will  hibernate,  unless  the  in- 
flow of  fresh  water  is  very  large.  One  other  thing  I  have  had  my  doubts 
about.  Hessel,  and  in  fact  nearly  all  writers  on  carp,  emphasize  the  state- 
ment that  warm  water  is  absolutely  essential  to  carp  culture.  I  suspect 
that  this  conclusion  is  empirical  rather  than  logical.  If  so,  it  may  mis- 
lead some  who  would  like  to  raise  a  few  carp  for  pleasure,  or  for  the  family 
table,  but  who  have  at  hand  only  facilities  for  a  cold  water  pond.  Concede 
that  warm  water  is  essential  to  natural  growth,  it  seems  tome  that  it  does 
not  follow  that  carp  fed  liberally  require  it.  Cold  water  would  produce 
little  or  no  food,  warm  water  the  greatest  possible  amount.  As  far  as  I  am 
concerned  this  lacks  proof.  I  simply  set  it  up  as  a  theory  to  be  knocked 
down  by  those  better  informed  than  myself.  S.  W.  COLTON. 


COME   AT   THE   SOUND   OF   A   BELL. 

CHILLICOTHE,  O.,  February  22,  1888. 

My  carp  do  not  go  into  the  mud.  When  filling  my  ice  house  I  cut  a 
hole  at  one  corner  of  the  pond,  over  the  deep  water.  Then  rang  my  bell 
as  I  did  in  the  summer  time,  and  they  came  by  the  hundreds.  I  have  lost 
no  fish  this  winter.  W.  A.  PURSEL. 

GROWTH  OF  CARP. 

FOURTEEN    WEEKS   OLD,    MEASURES    10%   INCHES. 

ST.  JOSEPH,  Mo.,  September  12,  1885. 

Sir,  I  have  read  a  great  many  items  in  your  journal  on  the  rapid  growth 
of  the  carp,  but  the  growth  of  the  carp  at  the  hatchery  will  exceed  any- 
thing that  I  saw  in  the  Journal.  I  took  eight  carp  to  the  St.  Joseph  fair, 
three  months  and  seven  days  old,  averaging  from  seven  to  ten  and  three- 
fourths  inches,  and  took  a  twenty-dollar  premium.  I  find  that  clabbered 
milk  is  one  of  the  best  things  for  food  for  young  carp.  They  will  grow 
and  thrive  faster  on  it  than  anything  else  you  can  feed  them. 

ELIAS  CATTRILL, 
Sup't  State  Hatchery,  St.  Joseph,  Mo. 


CLARENDON,  Tex.,  March  2»,  1886. 
In  February,  1885,  I  put  into  my  pond  fourteen  scale  carp,  from  four 


PRACTICAL   CARP  CULTURE.  113 

to  six  inches  long,  after  conveying  them  180  miles  by  wagon,  Dine  days 
on  the  road.  I  have  just  Drained  my  pond.  Found  the  original  fourteen 
all  right  and  more  than  twice  the  size  they  were  when  put  in,  I  also  took 
out  125  young  ones,  ranging  from  one  to  three  inches  long,  which  I  sold 
for  a  big  price,  and  left  a  few  more  in  the  pond.  I  can  only  account  for 
the  small  number  of  young  from  the  fact  that  my  pond  was  infested  last 
summer  with  turtles  and  frogs,  which  I  suppose  destroyed  many  of  the 
eggs  and  young  fish.  J.  G.  MURDOCH. 


AFTON,  Iowa,  August  12,  1886. 

In  November  last  I  placed  nineteen  carp  minnows  in  a  small  pond ; 
commenced  feeding  them  in  July;  they  will  average  fifteen  inches  in 
length  now  and  look  as  if  they  would  weigh  two  pounds. 

S.  D.  COMFORT. 

BLAKESBURG,  la.,  October  18,  1886. 

On  November  8,  1884,  I  planted  500  fry  from  Z%  to  3  inches  long  in  a 
pond  ten  feet  deep,  filled  with  surface  water.  On  the  21st  of  August,  1885, 
I  took  some  with  a  sein  that  weighed  2>a  to  3  pounds  each.  My  neighbors 
who  helped  draw  the  sein  could  scarce  believe  it  possible  they  had  grown 
so.  I  gave  them  some  to  try,  and  they  say  they  never  tasted  better  fish. 

W.  A,  DAY. 


EDGAR,  111.,  November  17,  1886. 

I  have  a  well  constructed  dam  with  drain  pipe,  overflow  and  screen, 
so  put  in  that  the  water  comes  through  from  below.  The  pond,  when  full, 
covers  about  one  acre  and  a  quarter  of  ground.  It  is  fed  by  tile  and  nat- 
ural springs  that  never  fail.  I  started  my  pond  in  October,  1885,  with 
large  and  small  scale  and  parti-scale  carp.  I  drew  my  pond  this  month 
and  found  a  few  thousand  of  1886  hatching  from  three  to  seven  inches 
long;  the  hatch  of  1886  weighing  from  three-quaoters  of  a  pound  to  a 
pound  and  a  quarter.  All  of  my  fish  are  in  a  thrifty  condition.  I  am  sell- 
ing some  young  fry  to  stock  ponds  with.  One  quickly  passes  the  experi- 
mental stage  and  finds  that  carp  culture  pays.  They  are  nice  for  breakfast, 
dinner  or  supper.  C.  C.  STANFIELD. 

HOOKER,  O.,  October  20,  1887. 

My  carp  ponds  have  been  very  successful  this  year.  I  have  four-year 
old  fish  that  weigh  14  pounds,  three  year-olds  that  weigh  10  pounds,  two- 
year  olds  5  pounds,  and  thousands  of  this  year's  spawn  from  2.}  to  7  inches 
long.  We  have  been  using  them  freely  this  fall  and  find  them  to  be  of 
excellent  quality.  Can  see  no  difference  in  the  quality  of  the  different 
varieties.  I  use  the  bottom  drain  overflow  in  my  ponds  and  consider  it 
superior  to  any  other.  S.  E.  WILLIAMSON. 

PALMETTO,  Ga.,  January  4.  1887. 
I  drew  my  pond  on  the  29th  day  of  December,  and  I  found  two  of  my 


114  PRACTICAL   CARP  CULTURE. 

carp  that  I  put  in  for  breeders.  One  weighed  5  pounds  and  the  other  6, 
and  three  diflerent  sizes  too  numerous  to  mention,  and  ail  were  in  tine 
condition.  My  pond  was  overstocked,  I  think.  After  three  years  my 
pond  had  enough  carp  from  1£  to  6  inches  to  stock  three  ponds  of  one- 
quarter  of  an  acre  each.  A.  J.  DENNIS. 


A   SIMPLE  METHOD   SUCCEEDS. 

PlNCKNEYVILLE,  111.,  July  9,  1887. 

My  carp  raising  is  done  on  the  simplest  and  rudest  principles.  In 
1882  I  put  twenty  in  a  stock  pond.  In  the  fall  of  1884  I  caught  twelve  of 
them  out  and  placed  them  in  another  pond,  built  the  same  fall,  in  another 
pasture  near  my  house.  Last  season  my  new  pond  of  an  acre  literally 
swarmed  with  young  fish.  To-day  when  we  feed  them  I  see  some  of  the 
original  ones,  over  thirty  inches  long,  also  some  that  I  received  from  the 
government  in  the  fall  of  1884— former  at  least  thirty  inches  long,  latter 
from,  twenty  to  twenty-four  inches;  then  thousands  of  last  year's  hathcing 
from  4  to  12  inches  in  length.  I  tell  our  farmers  they  need  not  be  experts 
to  raise  them.  Build  a  good  strong  dam  covering  from  one  to  as  many 
acres  as  they  desire,  put  a  dozen  carp  in  it,  and  inside  of  five  years  they 
will  have  all  the  fish  of  the  finest  quality  that  they  want.  When  they 
doubt  my  word  I  take  them  to  my  plain  country  pond,  covering  an  acre 
or  so,  call  up  the  fish,  throw  in  a  few  chunks  of  bread,  and  then  let  them 
stand  speechless  with  amazement  and  gaze  at  the  thousands  of  fish,  from 
20  inches  in  length  down  to  the  young  ones,  scrambling  over  each  other 
for  food.  I  then  pick  up  some  nice  yearlings  five  to  twelve  inches  long 
and  show  them  what  was  hatched  a  year  ago.  Then  they  are  convinced, 
but,  like  the  doubting  apostle,  nothing  but  seeing  and  feeling  will  drive 
away  their  unbelief.  They  look  at  my  pond  with  its  grasses,  lilies  and 
shade  trees  around  it;  they  can  make  one  as  good  as  mine,  snd  they  leave 
determined  to  have  a  pond  as  soon  as  they  can  build  it,  and  they  want  to 
know  if  1  can  let  them  have  some  fish  this  fall  that  will  lay  eggs  next 
spring.  They  haven't  time  for  them  to  grow;  they  mu«i  have  spawners, 
they  want  fish.  I  assure  you  that  when  a  new  industry  is  so  convincing 
to  the  average  farmer  on  first  presentation  under  so  rude  and  simple  cir- 
cumstances, it  is  a  success.  E.  H.  LEMEN. 


XENIA.  Ind.,  July  15,  1887. 

My  fish  are  doing  well.  On  the  14th  day  of  last  August  I  put  in  my 
pond  500  fish,  averaging  \%_  inches  long.  I  seined  my  pond  this  week; 
they  measure  from  five  to  eight  inches  in  length. 

D.  M.  DARBY. 


SPALDING,  Iowa,  February  7,  1887. 

I  got  my  first  carp  August  22, 1885,  71  in  number,  the  larger  about  four 
inches  long.    They  spawned  some  last  year.     They  have  done  better  and 


PRACTICAL   CARP   CULTURE.  115 

grown  faster  than  I  could  have  expected.  Last  fall  I  caught  some  18  inches 
long  that  weighed  3%  pounds.  I  had  three  kinds  of  carp.  The  scale  carp 
increased  the  most  and  made  the  biggest  growth,  and  they  are  good  enough 
fish  for  me  to  eat.  J.  V.  HOAKISON. 


HUDSON,  N.  M.,  October  15,  1887. 

My  carp  are  a  success,  and  are  doing  well.    I  think  I  have  some  that 
are  three  years  old,  and  will  weigh  from  9  to  10  pounds. 

R.  H.  HUDSON. 


SHINEBSVILLE,  Pa.,  December  18,  1887. 

My  four-year  old  carp  weigh  ten  pounds  each,  and  my  three-year-old 
ones  weigh  six  pounds.  I  will  fatten  1,500  for  the  market  the  coming  sum- 
mer and  show  the  people  how  big  a  carp  can  be  raised  in  one  summer  from 
three-inch  long  fry  if  put  in  a  warm  pond  about  April  1st. 

D.  N.  KERN. 


Much  has  been  written  and  said  upon  the  rapid  growth  of  carp,  their 
age,  their  measurement  and  their  weight  has  been  given,  and  while  the 
figures  have  been  readily  accepted  as  correct  by  the  great  majority  of  carp 
growers,  there  are  others  who  doubt  the  statements,  because  they  do  not 
tally  with  their  experience.  The  parent  stock,  the  character  of  the  water, 
the  food  supplied  and  the  climate,  each  make  a  great  difference  in  the 
development  of  this  rapid  growing  fish.  The  greatest  divergence  of  differ- 
ence will,  of  course,  be  found  where  all  these  conditions  are  on  the  one 
hand  favorable,  and  on  the  other  hand  unfavorable,  and  as  these  condi- 
tions approach  each  other,  so  will  the  growth  of  the  fish.  From  Vol.  VI. 
of  the  Bulletin  of  the  United  States  Fish  Commission,  page  457,,  we  clip 
the  following  statement  and  measurements  : 

GROWTH  OF  CARP. 

On  December  '2,  1885,  the  size  and  weight  of  two  young  carp  which 
were  just  5>£  months  old,  and  they  were  reared  at  the  carp  ponds  m 
Washington,  were  as  follows,  as  reported  by  Dr.  Hessel: 


Measurements. 

No.  1 
Mirror. 

No.  2 
Leather. 

Length,  inches                          

12 

12^ 

Verticle  height,  inches                            s       

.  4 

4 

Circumference,  inches 

7% 

8 

\Veight,  ounces                                .   .       

17* 

18 

The  eggs  were  obtained  by  methods  which  fixed  exactly  the  day  of 
impregnation,  which  in  this  case  took  place  on  June  15,  1885. 

This  is  an  official  statement,  and  is  specific,  and  from  an  official  and 
reliable  source.  It  is  well  established  that  with  equally  favorable  condi- 
tions, the  second  season's  growth  is  in  a  constantly  increasing  ratio  to 
that  of  the  first  season's.  Had  this  pair  of  carp  stopped  growing  for  the 


116  PRACTICAL   CARP    CULTURE. 

winter  ( ?)  before  they  were  weighed,  if  so  the  test  was  not  a  fair  one,  as 
they  should  have  been  weighed  just  before  they  stopped  for  the  winter. 
Did  the  weighing  stop  their  growth?  or  did  they  continue  to  grow  during 
December?  Let  us  take  them  where  we  find  them  and  leave  them  there 
until  the  1st  of  April,  1886,  when  we  start  them  out  on  their  way  at  the 
old  ratio  of  development,  without  an  increase  of  the  ratio,  and  on  Decem- 
ber "15,"  at  18  months  of  age,  one  of  the  fish  weighs  46  ounces  and  the 
other  43  ounces.  These  will  be  the  minimum  weights,  and  they  do  not  do 
the  fish  justice.  And  yet  they  cannot  but  be  satisfactory  to  carp  raisers. 


SEASON  OF  SPAWNING,  TEMPERATURE  OF  WATER,  AND 
LENGTH  OF  TIME  REQUIRED  FOR  EGGS  TO  HATCH  IN 
DIFFERENT  TEMPERATURES,  ETC. 

NEW  PORT  TRACEY,  O.,  July  8,  1885. 

I  will  give  my  mode  of  gathering  eggs  for  the  hatching  lake.  I  first 
build  the  lake;  I  make  it  twelve  feet  by  twelve  feet,  about  2£  feet  deep  in 
the  center,  and  the  shape  of  a  basin;  construct  it  near  the  large  lake  or 
some  place  where  it  can  be  fed  by  warm  fresh  water.  I  have  no  outlet  or 
waste  way.  I  only  feed  it  with  water  just  as  fast  as  it  soaks  away.  I  plank 
it  up  on  all  sides  tight,  so  that  no  snakes,  frogs  or  turtles  can  get  in.  Now 
I  set  sods  around  the  edge  of  the  large  lake,  from  ten  to  twelve  inches 
square,  the  grass  being  from  six  to  eight  inches  high.  When  the  spawn- 
ing season  comes  I  watch  early  in  the  morning  for  the  spawning ;  I  gather 
the  eggs  in  the  evening,  lifting  the  sods  carefully  with  a  fork  and  setting 
them  in  the  hatching  lake  the  same  depth  that  they  were  in  the  large  lake 

W.  H.  WESTHAFER. 


PARK  RIDGE,  Ills.,  May  12,  1886. 

Having  just  completed  an  experiment  instituted  t  >  determine  how 
long  it  takes  carp  eggs  to  hatch,  I  herewith  send  you  the  result.  On  Wed- 
nesday last,  May  5th,  my  carp  began  spawning  for  the  season.  On  Friday 
last,  on  my  return  to  the  ponds,  I  made  search  for  eggd  and  found  them  in 
abundance  on  hornwort  (Ceratophyllum) .  I  selected  sprays  with  eggs  ad- 
hering— in  all  forty — and  put  them  in  an  ordinary  fruit  jar,  placing  the 
jar  in  the  pond  so  that  the  surrounding  water  would  reach  within  an  inch 
of  the  top.  This  I  have  examined  morning  and  evening  of  each  day  since. 
It  had  been  quite  warm  last  week,  and  on  Friday  I  found  the  temperature 
of  the  water  to  be  64  deg.  Farh.,  while  the  atmosphere  in  the  shade  was 
62  deg.  Friday  a  northeast  storm  set  in,  and  since  then  the  weather  has 
been  cloudy  or  foggy  most  of  the  time,  with  but  little  sun  shining.  Dur- 
ing most  of  this  time  the  thermometer  has  varied  from  50  to  56  deg.  in  the 
shade,  while  the  water  has  fallen  to  57  deg.  Farh.  This  morning  the  first 
little  fish  made  its  appearance,  just  five  days  after  the  eggs  were  put  in  the 
jar,  and  seven  days  after  they  were  cast.  More  unfavorable  weather  could 


PRACTICAL    CARP    CULTURE.  117 

not  well  have  existed  for  the  hatching  of  carp  eggs  than  that  which 
has  prevailed  during  the  past  week  Last  June  I  carefully  tested  the  same 
matter  and  found  the  eggs  to  hatch  in  four  days,  the  weather  being  favor- 
able. We  may  therefore  conclude  that  in  this  latitude,  carp  eggs  will  hatch 
in  from  four  to  seven  days,  according  as  the  weather  is  favorable  or  un- 
favorable. This  is  quite  different  from  the  time  required  for  the  same 
purpose  in  Germany,  as  we  are  informed  on  good  authority,  viz.,  from 
twelve  to  twenty  days.  I  may  add  that  my  spawning  pond  consists  of 
l-56th  of  an  acre,  is  favorably  located,  having  on  the  west  and  northwest 
a  wooded  bluff.  It  is  stocked  with  eleven  carp  received  from  the  govern- 
ment, and  now  five  years  old,  with  fifteen  of  their  progeny  three  years  old. 

J.  H.   BOURNES. 


NEW  LISBON,  O.,  May  25,  1886. 

My  carp  spawned  on  the  21st  of  May.  On  the  23d  I  took  a  small  hand- 
ful of  the  sea  moss  which  I  had  put  in  the  spawning  pond  to  receive  the 
eggs  and  put  it  into  a  two  gallon  glass  globe,  with  about  three  quarts  of 
rainwater,  and  kept  it  in  the  sun  in  the  day  time  and  in  the  house  at  night. 
On  the  25th,  just  four  days,  or  ninety-six  hours  from  the  time  the  eggs 
were  laid,  there  were  dozens  of  young  carp  to  be  seen  in  the  globe.  The 
young  carp  are  quite  small  but  very  lively. 

JAMES  T.  HAWKINS. 


UNDERWOOD.  Tenn.,  June  13,  1886. 

I  have  two  four-year-olds ;  they  only  spawned  once  last  year.  This  year 
they  spawned  on  April  19th  and  on  Wednesday  evening  the  eggs  were 
hatching.  The  same  fish  is  spawning  this  morning  but  don't  seem  to  be 
depositing  many  eggs.  I  had  one  three-year-old  that  spawned  June  7th. 
The  eggs  hatched  in  forty-eight  hours.  The  thermometer  stood  at  80 
degrees  in  the  water  at  noon.  While  large  fish  lay  more  eggs,  I  believe 
we  can  get  more  fish  from  younger  spawners.  The  old  ones  will  eat  their 
eggs  unless  they  are  protected.  I  took  from  a  seven-pound  carp  last 
season  a  little  over  half  a  gallon  of  clean  eggs.  Did  not  count  them.  If 
some  one  will  count  half  a  gallon  of  cabbage  seeds,  they  can  tell  about 
how  many  eggs  to  the  pound  of  fish.  My  one-year-old  have  been  spawn- 
ing this  spring;  they  also  spawned  last  year. 

E.  P.  UNDERWOOD. 


SHiMERSViLLE,.Pa.,  June  14,  1886. 

I  have  completed  a  five  days'  experiment  in  taking  the  temperature  of 
water  in  my  quarter-acre  pond.  June  9th,  at  5  p.  m.,  76  deg.  Farh.,  it 
commenced  to  rain  at  3  p.  m.,  rained  all  night,  cleared  off  in  the  morning 
and  at  6  a.  m.,  June  10,  the  water  was  78  deg.  Farh.,  at  1  p.  m. ;  84  deg. 
Farh.  at  6 :30  p.  m.,  after  a  heavy  thunder  shower  of  one  hour  duration  the 
water  was  82  deg.  Farh.,  June  11,  at  4  p.  m.,  80  deg.  Farh. ;  June  12,  6  a.  m., 
72  deg. ;  11  a.  m.  82  deg. ;  3  p.  m.  90  deg. ;  5:30  p.  m.  88  deg. ;  8  p.  m.  82  deg. 


118  PRACTICAL  CARP  CULTURE. 

All  the  above  temperatures  was  taken  six  inches  below  the  surface  of  the 
water.  June  12,  8  p.  m.,  thermometer  was  65  deg.  in  open  air;  three  feet 
below  the  surface  of  the  water  72  deg. ;  June  13,  three  feet  below  the  sur- 
face, at  6  a.  m.,  70  deg. ;  temperature  in  open  air  60  deg. ;  at  4  p  m.,  four 
feet  deep,  72  deg.  The  water  was  seven  feet  deep  at  this  place.  In  my 
pond  No.  1  the  carp  spawned  April  21,  May  11  and  May  22.  In  my  pond 
No.  2  they  spawned  May  22  and  June  7.  In  pond  No.  1  I  have  six  and 
ten-pound  heavy  carp,  and  in  pond  No.  2  I  have  four  and  five-pound  heavy 
carp.  I  have  scale  carp. 

At  our  Eastern  State  hatchery  they  had  to  watch  the  old  carp  day  and 
night  so  they  would  not  destroy  their  spawn.  I  am  sure  that  my  scale  carp 
did  not  eat  a  single  egg.  My  scale  carp  always  spawn  a  month  earlier 
than  the  leather  carp  do  in  my  neighborhood.  A  carp  hatched  in  April 
will  be  much  ahead  of  a  carp  hatched  in  May  or  June,  not  only  in  the  first 
year  but  in  all  after  years.  D.  N.  KERN. 


TO  PREVENT  EGGS  BLOWING  OUT  AND  DRYING  UP. 

DRESDEN,  Tex.,  July  7,  1886. 

Let  me  tell  you  how  to  prevent  the  eggs  from  blowing  out  on  the  sand 
and  drying  up  in  the  sun,  for  I  am  out  on  the  high  prairies  and  not  a  tree 
or  shrub  about  my  pond,  and  the  wind  has  a  fair  sweep,  as  the  water  is 
about  level  with  the  prairie  around.  Take  strips  of  old  grain  sacks  or 
bagging  a  foot  wide  and  six  feet  long,  and  nail  to  strips  or  sticks  one  inch 
square  by  two  feet  long;  small  round  poles  will  do,  sharp  at  lower  end,  and 
stick  these  down  in  the  mud  in  the  edge  of  the  pond,  so  that  six  inches  of 
the  bagging  or  cloth  will  be  above  water.  The  eggs  hang  on  to  the  rough 
cloth  and  the  cloth  will  remain  wet  for  two  or  more  inches  above  water 
and  the  eggs  will  hatch  if  they  should  be  above  water. 

B.  F.  CARROLL. 


LAKESIDE,  KAN.,  Feb.  3,  '87. 

This  winter  has  been  a  hard  one  on  Kansas  carp,  on  account  of  ponds 
getting  so  low  in  the  fall  and  freezing  solid.  The  native  fish  in  the 
creeks  have  fared  no  better.  Some  places,  for  long  distances,  nearly  all 
are  dead.  I  have  watched  with  interest  the  results  of  cutting  fish  out 
of  the  ice,  and  have  been  able  to  hear  of  two  carp,  of  about  six  pounds 
each,  being  caught  that  way  out  of  the  creek  and  river  several  miles 
from  here.  My  carp  went  through  January  (ice  was  all  out  February 
1st)  without  the  loss  of  over  one  dozen,  as  I  have  between  50,000  and 
100,000.  I  think  that  is  doing  very  well.  I  have  increased  my  ponds 
in  number  and  size  until  I  now  have  three  ponds,  covering  nearly  25  acres 
of  ground,  stocked  exclusively  with  carp.  I  shall  make  another  pond  this 
fail  to  cover  15  acres,  thus  giving  me  40  acres  in  all.  Carp  raising  is  no 
longer  an  experiment.  It  is  a  reality.  I  can  sell  all  I  have  for  market 
for  15  cents  per  pound  live  weight.  Have  sold  Home,  and  the  almost  unani- 
mous verdict  was,  "as  good  as  I  ever  ate."  What  better  do  we  want  thuu 


PRACTICAL,    CARP  CULTURE.  119 

that?  To  those  of  my  brother  carp-raisers  who  have  lost  all  in  the  ice 
this  winter,  I  would  say  don't  give  up  the  carp.  They  are  bound  to  be  the 
coming  fish.  Get  some  more  and  try  it  again.  For  your  benefit  I  would 
say  that  I  wintered  11,000  in  one  of  my  ponds  this  winter,  never  cut  the 
ice,  fed  nothing  and,  in  short,  paid  no  attention  to  them  whatever,  and 
have  iipt  lost  one-half  dozen.  My  secret  was  just  this:  Deep  water  and 
plenty  of  it.  The  balance  of  my  fish  were  put  in  a  small  pond  (there  is 
between  50,000  and  100,000  in  there),  not  containing  over  one-tenth  of  an 
acre,  and  not  overlive  leetdeep  in  the  deepest  place.  I  cut  in  the  ice  a 
hole  16  feet  square,  and  kei  t  it  open  all  winter,  feeding  once  a  week.  The 
result  is — no  dead  fish,  not  OLIO  dozen  in  all. 

Another  point  and  I  will  close.  In  the  past,  when  I  have  drained  my 
pond,  I  have  found  bushels,  I  might  say  wagon  loads,  of  those  large-sized 
tadpoles.  I  suspicioned  my  carp  of  eating  them  during  the  past  summer, 
and  when  I  drew  the  water  off  in  November  there  was  not  one  tadpole  in 
the  pond.  I  infer  from  this  that  the  smaller  sizes  do  not  eat  them,  but  I 
know  the  larger  sizes  do.  W.  C.  ROSE. 

EGGS   THAT  GO   TO   THE   BOTTOM    ARE   NOT   LOST. 

CHATHAM  CENTER,  O.,  June  16,  1887. 

It  is  said  that  eggs  that  go  to  the  bottom  will  not  hatch.  This  is  not 
correct.  I  fixed  my  pond  all  up  with  grass  and  brush,  but  the  very  dry 
weather  caused  the  water  to  settle,  leaving  my  fixing  high  and  dry  and  yet, 
in  a  single  dip  with  a  scoop  I  took  out  556  minnows  by  actual  count. 

JOHN  W.  WHITE. 


WINSLOW,  Mo.,  October,  1887. 

My  carp  spawned  last  year  on  May  18th,  19th  and  28th,  and  on  June 
1st,  7th,  llth,  13th,  16th,  30th  and  on  July  5th.  I  have  two  spawning  ponds, 
two  growing  or  stock  ponds  and  a  supply  pond,  covering  in  all  about  eight 
acres.  JAMES  W.  WALDO. 


CORSICANA,  Mo.,  April  23,  1888. 

My  fish  commenced  spawning  April  2nd,  and  in  five  days  after  they 
hatched.  We  put  the  thermometer  in  the  water  and  it  stood  at  65  deg. 
Now  I  think  there  are  at  least  100,000  young  ones,  which  are  growing 
nicely.  I  am  feeding  the  large  fish,  which  are  becoming  very  gentle,  al- 
most gentle  enough  to  eat  out  of  my  hand.  I  will  soon  have  completed 
my  fifth  pond.  Have  a  hydraulic  ram  running  all  the  time.  Am  plowing 
and  feeding  hogs  to  firmly  fix  the  bed.  Will  soon  attach  an  elevator  to  the 
carding  machine,  which,  together  with  the  ram,  will  force  from  80  to  100 
gallons  per  minute.  My  fish  are  doing  just  as  well  as  I  want  them  to  do, 
and  ten  times  better  than  I  expected. 

L.  J.  BLANKENSHIP. 

« 

A  SURPRISE. 

BERTHOUD,  COL.,  April  12,  1888. 
Three  years  ago  I   bought  twenty  scale   carp  about  sixteen  inches 


120  PRACTICAL  CARP  CULTURE. 

long  and  put  them  in  my  lake,  for  a  trial;  the  lake  is  about  60  by 
100  rods  long.  It  is  a  natural  basin  without  an  outlet  and  in  the  deep- 
est place  is  from  7  to  8  feet.  Last  year  folks  used  to  ask  me  about  my 
carp;  I  told  them  that  I  thought  they  were  all  dead  ;  but  three  weeks  ago 
some  one  asked  me  if  I  would  let  them  try  a  seine  in  it.  I  told  them  yes, 
for  I  wanted  to  know  whether  I  had  any  carp  left.  The  trial  was 
made,  the  first  haul  we  had  nothing;  the  second  haul  we  got  a  fe^  carp 
and  some  suckers;  the  third  haul  we  had  10  big  washtubs  full,  of  all  sizes; 
the  largest  weighed  over  10  pounds.  Among  this  lot  there  were  some  50 
pounds  of  suckers.  All  the  fish  were  of  a  fine  quality. 

C.  G.  BESTLE. 


CARP  SEEKING  THEIR  OLD  HOME. 

POTOMAC,  ILL.,  May  31,  1888. 

On  the  12th  day  of  May,  1886,  we  had  a  heavy  rain  storm.  So 
much  water  fell  at  the  time  that  the  overflow  of  one  of  my  carp 
ponds,  or  lakes,  was  inadequate  to  carry  off  the  water,  and  as  a  conse- 
quence the  levee  burst.  At  the  time  there  was  in  it  120  spawners  twelve 
to  twenty-four  inches  long  and  6, 000  young  fish.  The  levee  was  repaired  in 
the  next  few  days,  but  I  found  at  the  next  drawing  that  I  had  lost  60  of 
the  large  fish  and  a  thousand  or  two  of  the  small  ones.  Now  the  strange 
part  of  the  story  is  that  these  large  fish  are  now  coming  back  for  admit- 
tance, after  an  absence  of  more  than  two  years.  A  few  days  ago  while 
drawing  this  same  pond  I  discovered  three  large  carp  (one  spawner  and 
two  milters)  in  the  ditch  below  the  pond.  They  were  returned  to  their 
old  quarters.  To-day  we  found  the  fourth  one  trying  to  make  an  entrance 
from  the  creek.  Now  the  query  in  my  mind  is:  are  these  fish  trying  from 
knowledge  to  gain  an  entrance  to  the  pond  they  left  so  long  ago?  As 
there  have  been  no  carp  planted  in  the  streams  near  here,  I  feel  sure  they 
are  the  same  fish  that  left  me  two  years  ago.  Since  their  escape  there  has 
been  several  carp  taken  from  the  streams  with  hook  and  line. 

JOHN  GOODWIN E,  JR. 


SOME  GENERAL  PHASES  OF  CARP  CULTURE. 

A    FINE   TABLE    FISH. 

CHAGRIN  FALLS,  O.,  March  24,  1885. 

Carp  culture  has  come  to  stay,  and  the  more  it  is  investigated  the  bet- 
ter it  shows  up.  The  vicinity  of  Chagrin  Falls  enjoys  the  notoriety  of 
having  more  carp  ponds  than  any  other  part  of  the  United-  States  of  like 
area.  There  are  within  twelve  miles  of  this  place  over  100  ponds,  and  I 
think  the  number  will  be  doubled  the  coming  summer.  The  first  pond 
was  constructed  hereby  W.  E.  Walters  three  years  ago  and  stocked  by  him 
in  connection*  with  the  Chagrin  Falls  Fish  Club,  The  result  has  proved 
so  satisfactory  that  everybody  is  going  into  it.  He  has  fish  three  yea  rs  old 
which  weigh  ten  pounds  each,  and  in  his  pon^,  which  covers  only  about 


PRACTICAL,  CARP  CULTURE.  121 

one-fourth  of  an  acre,  he  has  thousands  of  them  from  that  weight  down. 
They  are  so  tame  that  they  eat  from  the  hand,  and  fairly  crowd  each  other 
out  of  the  water  in  their  efforts  to  obtain  the  food. 

As  an  evidence  of  the  growth  of  carp  I  quote  the  following  from  the 
Chagrin  Falls  Exponent  of  September  4,  1884: 

"The  carp  in  Mr.  J.  M.  Bullock's  pond  in  Russel,  now  measure  from 
six  to  ten  inches  long,  the  largest  weighing  fully  one  pound.  This  is  a 
good  growth  for  fish  which  were  hatched  in  May  of  this  year,  and  there  is 
no  possible  doubt  of  the  correctness  of  this  report,  for  the  pond  was  filled 
this  year  for  the  first  time,  and  no  fish  over  an  inch  long  was  put  in  it,  be- 
sides the  fish  may  be  seen  any  day  by  those  doubting  the  story,  which,  we 
confess  sounds  a  little  fishy." 

I  have  eaten  carp  and  consider  them  fully  equal  to  black  bass  or  white 
fish,  if  grown  in  water  not  too  stagnant,  and  being  a  life-long  angler,  I 
consider  myself  a  fair  j  udge.  In  quality  they  equal  anything  we  have  ever 
eaten,  excepting  only  brook  trout.  The  texture  is  fine  and  firm,  and  there 
are  no  bones,  excepting  the  backbone  and  the  usual  attachments,  as  in  the 
case  of  a  black  bass  or  white  fish.  The  flavor  resembles  that  of  a  rock 
bass  or  perch  more  than  any  other  fish  with  which  we  are  acquainted. 
The  slightest  muddy  taste  was  not  discovered,  although  the  pond  in 
which  they  were  grown  had  a  muddy  bottom.  The  late  Dr.  Theodatus 
(Torlick,  of  Bedford,  "father  of  American  fish  culture,"  was  of  the  same 
opinion,  after  giving  the  matter  a  fair  test,  and  he  was  surely  competent 
to,  judge. 

Carp  culture  has  much  to  recommend  it.  The  lending  of  variety  to 
the  farm-table ;  the  rendering  of  the  farm  more  attractive  to  the  young, 
and  thereby  keeping  our  boys  on  the  farms,  instead  of  sending  them  into 
the  cities,  or  into  the  Overcrowded  professions ;  and  above  all  the  adding, 
with  little  expense,  to  the  farm  profits,  are  among  the  strong  arguments  in 
its  favor. 

There  are  few  farms  which  do  not  afford  some  suitable  place  for  a  carp 
pond,  and  be  it  of  only  a  few  rods  area  it  will  supply  the  table  with  excel- 
lent fish,  and  pay  many  times  its  cost.  I  can  show  you  within  five  miles 
of  Chagrin  Falls  half  a  dozen  ponds  that  you  could  not  buy  for  a  thousand 
dollars  apiece,  if  the  owner  could  not  have  another. 

J.  J.  STRANAHAN. 


ONK  WAY  OF  COOKING  THEM. 

OWASCO,  N.  Y.,  October  1C,  1887. x 

I  live  near  Owasco  lake  where  we  have  trout,  pickerel,  perch,  pike 

and  suckers ;  none  of  them  can  beat  a  carp.    I  have  carp  all  the  year 

round.    The  way  to  cook  fish  is  to  cut  them  in  pieces,  salt  and  roll  them 

in  flour ;  have  half  lard  and  butter  on  a  griddle,  hot;  lay  your  carp  on,  fry 

h 


122  PRACTICAL  CARP  CULTURE. 

slow;  keep  adding  on  butter,  so  they  won't  burn.    They  are  good  enough 
for  me.  JOHN  N.  BROKAW. 


TURNING  OUT  THE  HOGS  TO  MAKE  ROOM  FOR  CARP. 

WASHINGTON,  KAN.,  May  12,  1885. 

I  have  been  experimenting  with  cnrp  ponds  for  the  last  three  years. 
I  first  made  them  in  small  streams  that  drained  my  farm  and  stocked 
with  IT.  S.  fish,  but  so  far  the  results  have  been  pro  bono  publico,  for  an 
occasional  very  high  freshet  would  permit  the  fish  to  go  to  other  ponds, 
and,  like  the  boy  whose  tea-kettle  fell  overboard  into  the  sea,  I  know 
where  they  are  and  went  to,  though  I  can't  put  my  finger  on  them.  In 
Europe  and  in  England,  as  a  disciple  of  Walton,  I  have  occasionally  and 
rarely  hooked  a  carp,  in  the  Thames  and  its  tributaries.  They  live  in  the 
streams  with  other  fish,  even  the  pike,  but  not  in  large  numbers,  having 
so  maoy  enemies  to  contend  with.  They  attain  a  large  size  and  are  highly 
prized  as  a  table  fish,  coming  next  to  speckled  trout.  This  year  I  am 
making  my  ponds  in  low  places  on  the  side  of  small  streams  or  where  the 
rainfall  on  the  hills  will  fill  my  ponds  without  overflowing.  I  have  no 
doubt  of  the  success  of  carp  culture  in  Northwestern  Kansas.  The  French 
political  economist  counts  fish  raising  a  very  important  factor  in  furnish- 
ing food  for  the  people.  In  fact  I  have  turned  the  porker  out  of  my  lots 
and  am  substituting  fish  ponds  in  their  place,  and  expect  to  reap  a  reward 
by  a  larger  profit  in  money,  and  in  improved  digestion  by  their  use  at  the 
table,  for  when  the  Jews  of  old  tabooed  pork  for  centuries  there  was 
wisdom  in  it,  for  we  are  apt  to  become  as  gross  as  the  diet  we  feed  on. 

CHAS.  WILLIAMSON,  M.  D. 

On  April  15,  1886,  Mr.  Williamson  writes:  I  shipped  fish  last  year  in 
June,  of  ttoe  new  hatch,  125  miles,  that  were  only  three-fourths  of  an  inch 
long.  They  survived  the  trip  and  have  done  well.  I  shall  ship  1,000  in  a 
can  in  the  same  way  this  season  to  stock  other  ponds,  for  I  do  not  want  to 
pay  too  dear  for  my  hobby. 


WATER  SUPPLIED  BY  WIND  MILL — BOTTOM  PUDDLED  BY  HOGS. 

TAYLOR,  OGLE  Co.,  ILL.,  April  13,  1886. 

I  wrote  you  last  summer  that  I  was  going  to  sink  a  well  and  put  up  a 
wind  mill  and  lay  pipes  to  supply  two  ponds,  the  ponds  being  sink  holes 
that  the  hogs  had  packed  or  puddled  the  bottom  so  they  held  water.  I 
went  84  feet  for  water,  put  in  a  three  inch  cylinder  and  a  ten  foot  wheel, 
and  could  raise  the  water  in  one  pond  three  inches  a  week  without  any 
rain,  the  pond  100  feet  across.  The  ponds  are  no  deeper  now  than  they 
were  when  the  ground  froze  last  fall.  The  edges  freezing  expanded  the 
soil,  and  when  thawed  left  them  loose  and  the  water  soaked  away.  I  got 
a  few  fish  the  6th  of  July,  and  they  grew  so  fast  that  I  got  600  of  their 
brothers  and  sisters  the  19th  of  August  out  of  spring  water.  My  fish  are 
all  right  this  spring.  The  first  ones  that  I  got  are  11  to  12  inches  long  and 
weigh  13  to  15  ounces,  the  last  ones  are  nearly  six  inches  long  and  weigh 


PRACTICAL  CARP  CULTURE.  123 

one  and  one-half  to  two  ounces.  That  is  the  difference  of  being  in  spring 
water  and  warm  pond  water  with  mud  clay  bottom  for  six  weeks  during 
the  growing  season.  Where  the  pipes  came  out  in  the  ponds  about  18 
inches  under  the  water  I  put  an  elbow  to  throw  the  current  up  against 
the  ice,  aod  it  kept  an  air  hole  most  of  the  time.  Toward  spring  I  made 
a  box  three  feet  high  on  north  side,  and  one  foot  high  on  south  side,  six 
feet  square,  covered  with  glass,  and  set  over  the  hole.  It  helped  very 
much.  Would  be  better  to  put  a  shed  roof  on  and  close  up  west  and  east 
sides.  I  am  getting  some  spawners  the  first  of  May.  Last  fall  I  plowed 
and  scraped  two  days  to  make  a  little  pond  for  them,  fenced  it,  and  am 
scattering  shelled  corn  around  the  edges  for  the  hogs.  As  the  wind  mill 
pumps  the  water  in  it  is  very  muddy,  but  by  letting  it  stand  two  weeks  it 
will  be  fit  to  put  the  fish  in,  and  wron't  rye  straw  be  good  to  receive  the 
eggs. 

I  kept  two  fish  in  the  house  this  winter  to  watch  their  movements. 
They  were  in  a  glass  box  14  by  28  inches,  6  inches  deep  of  water.  At  first 
the  water  had  to  be  changed  every  two  days,  but  later  in  the  season  not  so 
often,  and  once  it  wras  not  changed  for  five  weeks.  They  would  stay  in 
one  corner  with  their  heads  together  for  days,  unless  disturbed,  and 
hardly  move  a  fin.  When  the  water  was  changed  they  would  be  quite 
lively  for  a  few  days,  and  would  eat  a  little  but  did  not  grow  any. 

H.  P.  EDMONDS. 


CARP  ARE  CANNIBALS. 

ROSEHILL,  TENN.,  December  20,  1886. 

1  see  in  speaking  of  the  draining  of  Mr.  Ritchie's  pond,  on  the  15th 
of  November,  you  are  at  a  loss  to  account  for  the  greater  percentage  of 
scale  over  mirror  carp.  Precisely  the  same  thing  has  occurred  to  me  for 
two  years  past,  and  I  account  for  the  difference  of  increase  in  my  water  in 
this  way.  The  scale  carp  is  a  more  active  fish  than  the  mirror  or  leather, 
and  in  the  spawning  season  the  scale  milter  vivifies  a  much  larger  per- 
centage of  spawn  than  the  others,  which  will  account  for  the  difference  in 
part.  But  there  is  another  reason  for  the  difference,  much  more  potent, 
in  my  judgment,  than  this.  The  pure  scale  carp  in  my  water  has  upset 
all  the  received  theories  as  to  its  non-flesh-eating  habits,  and  demonstrated 
to  my  entire  satisfaction  that  it  is,  in  fact,  as  well  as  in  theory,  a  fish.  If 
that  be  so,  it  is  not  so  different  from  other  fish,  as  some  men  imagined, 
but  may  be  a  less  ravenous  cannibal  than  many  other  varieties.  It  is  abso- 
lutely certain  that  my  scale  carp  devour  spawn  very  greedily, "and  I  have 
seen  them  "in  the  very  act"  so  often  during  the  past  three  years,  I  do  not 
expect  much  increase  if  the  eggs  are  not  removed.  That  they  also  eat  the 
young  fish  when  permitted  to  remain  in  the  water  among  them  is  abso- 
lutely indisputable,  for  I  have  observed  it  too  often  to  be  mistaken. 
Closely  concealed  within  a  few  feet  of  the  fish,  I  have  repeatedly  observed 
three  and  four  year  old  carp  float  to  the  top  of  the  water,  and  hold  their 


124  PRACTICAL  CARP  CULTURE. 

mouths  open  as  the  buffalo  fish  does  in  "piping,"  while  a  very  slight  puff 
of  air  would  drive  many  young  fish  into  the  trap  set  for  them. 

My  attention  was  first  drawn  to  this  habit  by  watching  the  old  fish, 
and  they  invariably  thrust  their  heads  up,  facing  the  wind.  By  a  vane  or 
a  flag,  indicating  a  change  in  the  current  of  the  wind,  when  not  alarmed, 
the  fish  always  changed  position.  Such  is  the  exquisite  sensibility  of  the 
tentacles,  that  the  fish  would  often  detect  a  change  in  the  current  of  air 
as  it  swept  over  the  water,  and  reverse  its  position  before  the  flag  indicated 
the  change.  For  more  than  a  year  I  use  a  United  States  flag  for  this  pur- 
pose, but  some  "trooly  loyal"  thief  came  in  the  night  and  stole  it  off  the 
flagstaff,  and  after  that  I  resorted  to  other  devices  for  noting  a  change  in 
the  wind.  In  view  of  these  plainly  manifested  habits  of  three  and  four 
year  old  fish  in  devouring  the  young  during  all  warm  days  in  the  early 
summer,  I  cannot  entertain  the  slightest  doubt  of  the  cannibalism  of  scale 
carp  until  I  first  learn  how  to  doubt  the  evidence  of  my  own  senses.  But 
the  other  reason  for  the  disparity  of  numbers  observed  in  Mr.  Ritchie's 
pond:  During  the  growing  season  for  carp,  and  while  the  younglings  are 
still  quite  small,  the  water  of  the  pond  is  always  more  or  less  muddy. 
The  scale  fish  are  so  near  the  color  of  the  water,  any  little  leaf,  or  blade  of 
grass,  or  moss  in  the  pond  furnishes  them  a  secure  hiding  place  from  the 
larger  ones;  but  it  is  quite  different  with  the  mirror,  the  golden-colored 
scales  of  which  make  it  a  "shining  mark"  and  render  escape  much  more 
difficult.  Thus  you  see  I  am  not  a  convert  to  the  new-fangled  theory  that 
the  Deity  performed  a  miracle  in  the  creation  of  the  carp,  but  believe  the 
"big  fish"  devour  the  little  ones  when  man  does  not  wisely  exercise  his 
God-given  dominion  over  them,  as  he  does  with  the  "beasts  of  the  field 
and  the  fowls  of  the  air."  M.  T.  PEEPLES. 


AN  EASY  WAY  TO  MULTIPLY  PONDS— FISH  KEPT  IN  THE  CELLAR. 

POMEROY,  ().,  December  26,  1886. 

One  year  ago  last  spring  I  put  in  two  2-year-old  scale  carp  in  one  of 
my  ponds.  Last  fall  we  drew  off  the  water  and  found  about  one  bushel 
of  carp  from  one  to  ten  inches  long.  This  fall  we  drew  oft  the  water,  and 
found  I  think  an  even  wagon  load,  from  one  to  sixteen  inches  long,  the 
largest  weighing  two  pounds.  The  two  old  fish  weighed  seven  poundH 
each.  I  gathered  out  all  the  largest  fish  and  placed  them  in  a  large  box, 
which  I  will  now  undertake  to  describe.  I  first  drew  two  feet  of  water 
out  of  pond,  next  I  built  a  board  fence  across  the  upper  end  of  pond;  I 
now  dug  a  hole  large  enough  for  a  box  24  feet  long,  4  feet  wide  and  5  feet 
deep,  using  the  dirt  to  build  a  levee  from  end  of  box  to  the  board  fence*- 
This  makes  a  pond  40  feet  square  on  each  side  of  the  box.  The  water  is 
four  feet  deep  in  the  box,  and  about  sixteen  inches  deep  in  the  sYnali 
ponds.  I  should  have  said  before  that  I  banked  up  dirt  against  the  upper 
side  of  the  board  fence  higher  than  high  water  mark.  I  have  the  box 
so  arranged  as  to  let  water  from  the  small  ponds  to  the  large  pond  belowr. 
I  put  a  partition  in  the  large  box  by  nailing  slats  across  the  box  and  filling 


PRACTICAL    CARP   CULTURE.  125 

in  with  gravel.  The  space  for  gravel  being  four  feet  and  ten  inches  thick. 
This  I  think  is  far  better  than  wire  screen.  The  water  runs  in  near  the 
end  of  the  box.  All  the  water  that  runs  into  the  ponds  must  run  through 
this  box.  When  we  drained  our  ponds  this  fall  we  put  about  fifty  fish  in 
the  box,  and  I  don't  know  how  many  buckets  full  in  the  small  ponds. 
When  we  use  all  that  is  in  the  box,  we  will  draw  the  water  off  from  the 
small  ponds  (which  are  only  about  sixteen  inches  deep)  and  fill  up  the 
box  for  winter  use. 

We  have  a  seine  4x4>£  feet  to  take  them  from  the  box.  The  lids  of 
the  box  open  back  on  a  frame  making  a  place  to  walk  when  seining.  I 
intend  to  use  these  small  ponds  for  spawning  purposes  in  summer,  and 
as  above  stated  in  fall  and  winter. 

I  dug  a  cistern  last  fall  within  a  few  feet  of  our  cellar,  made  a  hole 
from  cistern  to  cellar,  put  in  an  inch  gas  pipe,  dug  a  sink  in  cellar  2>£x6 
feet,  and  one  foot  deep.  Now  after  the  sink  is  filled  with  water  a  stream 
of  water  smaller  than  a  straw  will  supply  enough  water  for  two  dozen 
fish.  Now  when  my  wife  wants  a  mess  of  fish  she  can  get  them  as  easy 
as  getting  a  mess  of  potatoes  out  of  the  cellar.  E.  D.  ASHWORTH. 

In  April,  1887,  Mr.  Ashworth  wrote:  UI  would  just  say  that  my  box 
arrangement  that  I  described  in  the  January  number  has  proved  a  perfect 
success.  We  have  had  fish  to  eat  ever  since  last  fall,  simply  because  they 
were  where  we  could  catch  them.  Also  the  arrangement  in  our  cellar  as 
described  in  the  above  number  has  been  a  success,  we  have  kept  them  a 
month  or  more  just  to  see  if  they  would  live,  and  they  appeared  as 
healthy  as  when  first  put  in.  Their  table  qualities  are  excellent  as  all 
that  have  eaten  of  them  pronounce  them  so." 


NATIVE  FISH  DELAY  SUCCESS. 

NORBORN,  Mo.,  May  20,  1886. 

About  four  years  ago  I  made  a  fish  pond  and  wrote  to  the  Fish  Com- 
missioner for  some  carp  to  stock  it  with,  was  informed  that  I  could  not 
get  any  until  fall.  I  was  so  anxious  to  have  the  fish  in  my  pond  that  I 
went  down  in  the  Missouri  river  bottom,  where  the  water  was  drying  up 
along  the  railroad  bottom,  and  caught  a  whole  barrel  of  fish  of  all  kinds 
and  sizes  and  put  them  into  the  pond.  The  last  of  December  the  same 
year  I  received  from  Forest  Park  pond,  St.  Louis,  a  can  containing 
twenty-two  mirror  carp,  which  I  put  into  the  pond.  I  had  no  information 
on  the  subject,  until  the  winter  of  1884-5,  when  I  received  a  little  book 
from  the  State  Fish  Commissioners  on  carp  culture.  In  the  fall  of  1885  I 
made  a  new  pond  and  drained  the  old  pond  by  cutting  through  the  bank, 
having  no  drain  pipe.  Out  of  the  original  twenty-two  carp  I  had  sixteen  • 
left.  I  found  twenty  one-year-old  carp  and  only  two  young  carp,  and 
several  thousand  little  sun  perch,  a  few  small  catfish  and  plenty  of  frogs 
and  crawfish.  I  put  nine  of  my  old  fish  in  my  new  pond  at  the  time  I 
drained  the  old  one,  the  balance  I  put  in  a  box  made  by  digging  a  hole 
8x12  feet  square,  three  and  a  half  feet  deep  in  the  ground,  running  spring 


126  PRACTICAL  CARP  CULTURE. 

through  it,  (I  should  have  stated  before  that  my  ponds  are  fed  by  springs, 
the  ponds  being  about  one  hundred  yards  below  them)  in  this  box  my  fish 
wintered  finely.  After  cleaning  out  and  repairing  my  old  pond  this 
spring,  I  took  my  fish  out  of  the  box  on  the  9th  of  May,  and  put  them  in 
the  old  pond,  and  in  two  days  after  they  were  in  they  literally  covered  six 
cedar  brush,  which  I  had  placed  there,  with  eggs,  and  in  just  five  days 
they  hatched  out.  My  carp  in  the  new  pond  spawned  a  little  on  the  6th 
of  May,  the  water  being  a  temperature  of  68  degrees.  I  have  provided 
both  of  my  ponds  with  the  Cary  plan  for  draining.  The  ponds  cover 
about  half  an  acre  each,  depth  of  water  five  and  a  half  feet  at  the  deepest 
points.  In  conclusion,  I  want  to  state  that  half  day's  labor  that  I  spent 
in  procuring  and  putting  into  my  pond  of  that  barrel  of  native  fish  has 
cost  me  two  years  benefits  of  my  ponds.  If  I  could  have  had  that  little 
book  that  I  received  afterward  from  the  State  Fish  Commissioner,  and 
your  valuable  paper  to  read  at  the  time  I  made  my  first  pond  I  would  not 
have  made  that  sad  mistake.  DANIEL  HEINEY. 


50,000  CARP  SOLD  IN    FIFTEEN   DAYS. 

EDINBURG,  IND.,  October  24,  1887. 

I  have  been  very  busy  the  last  three  weeks  in  fishing  out  and  restock- 
ing my  carp  ponds.  I  had  to  build  this  year  five  additional  store  rooms  in 
which  to  place  my  surplus  carp,  making  eight  in  all.  I  thought  these 
would  be  ample  room  for  all  I  would  have  left  after  restocking  my  waters, 
but  I  found,  to  my  surprise,  that  I  did  not  have  one-half  the  room  I 
needed,  so  1  had  to  use  one  of  my  regular  spawning  ponds  in  addition  to 
the  eight  store  rooms  for  the  winter  quarters  of  my  surplus  fish.  I  started 
to  count  all  my  carp,  young  and  old,  but  the  number  of  fry  was  so  great 
that  I  gave  it  up,  and  counted  only  those  that  I  put  back  in  the  ponds  for 
another  year.  Of  course  I  will  be  able  to  report  the  number  of  carp  I  used 
for  stocking  my  own  pond,  as  well  as  those  that  I  sell  in  the  future. 
Since  October  8  I  have  sold  and  engaged  50,000,  nearly  all  minnows,  and  I 
have  used  30,000  for  my  own  waters,  making  up  to  date  80,000  carp  of  all 
sizes.  Two  of  my  smallest  store  rooms  furnished  them  and  still  they  are 
not  half  emptied,  so  you  may  have  some  idea  of  the  vast  number.  This 
may  seem  fishy  to  you,  but  if  you  will  come  out  I  will  convince  you  that 
I  have  a  good  many  carp.  V.  STILLABOWER. 


TRAP  AND  AUTOMATIC  FEEDER. 

EAST  LYNN,  111.,  October  26,  1886. 

Let  me  tell  you  how  I  had  a  nice  ten-acre  pond  with  thousands  of  carp 
in  but  could  catch  none  to  eat.  It  is  three-fourths  of  a  mile  from  my 
house,  so  it  was  difficult  to  feed  regularly  in  a  trap  to  catch  them.  Last 
winter  I  built  a  cheap  10x12  feet  building  on  the  ice  in  the  middle  of  the 
pond.  To  make  the  building  I  took  four  poles  sixteen  feet  long  and  eight 
inches  in  diameter  for  the  sills.  I  laid  two  of  them  on  the  ice  side  by  side 


PRACTICAL  CARP  CULTURE.  127 

ten  feet  apart ;  then  I  took  the  other  two  and  laid  them  across  the  first 
two  twelve  feet  apart  and  bolted  them  firmly  together  with  four  1x14  inch 
bolts.  Then  for  the  ends  of  the  building  I  set  the  boards  up  end  ways  and 
nailed  them  on  the  inside  of  the  end  sills ;  then  eighteen  inches  above  the 
end  sills  I  put  in  another  set  of  light  sills  4x4,  all  around  the  outside,  then 
nailed  the  sideboards  on  the  inside  like  the  ends  but  only  let  them  come 
down  to  the  upper  sills — so  there  will  be  an  open  space  eighteen  inches 
high  and  twelve  feet  long  on  each  side  for  the  slide  doors  on  the  inside. 
All  this  rough  frame  work  is  always  under  water.  After  the  building  was 
complete,  I  sawed  the  ice  all  around  about  eighteen  feet  square  and  kept 
each  side  sawed  about  equal  so  when  it  broke  it  would  go  almost  straight 
down  with  the  block  of  ice.  I  was  careful  to  hold  the  saw  a  little  slanting 
so  the  block  of  ice  was  a  little  smaller  on  top  than  on  the  bottom,  then  it 
would  not  wedge  fast.  The  block  of  ice  would  soon  melt  and  leave  the 
building  firmly  on  the  ground,  and  standing  perpendicular,  too.  But  if 
the  bottom  of  the  pond  is  not  level  then  the  sills  could  be  raised  on  the 
ice  before  building  to  suit  any  slope  of  the  pond  bottom.  That  is, 
if  the  bottom  slopes  one  foot  in  sixteen  then  raise  the  sills  with  blocks  of 
ice  on  one  side  one  foot  high. 

I  made  two  slide  doors  eighteen  inches  high  and  twelve  feet  wide,  one 
on  each  side.  These  slide  doors  are  raised  with  ropes  over  pulleys  and 
fastened  to  a  wheel  with  a  crank  to  it.  The  doors  are  weighted  so  they 
will  sink  easily.  There  is  a  moveable  bottom  10x12  feet,  made  of  common 
boards,  with  some  grating  near  each  side  to  let  the  water  through.  This 
floor  is  also  weighted  with  about  500  pounds  of  old  iron.  It  is  raised  with 
ropes  at  each  corner  and  over  pulleys  to  a  windlass.  The  fish  are  fed  on 
this  floor  until  they  learn  to  come  there.  I  have  a  small  rope  hitched  to 
the  door-post  and  hitched  to  a  post  in  the  water  about  six  rods  away.  A 
boat  is  rowed  up  to  the  rope  and  I  slyly  pull  the  boat  up  to  the  building 
and  with  a  key  the  side  doors  are  instantly  dropped.  Then  the  floors  are 
lifted  with  windlass  at  leisure.  It  is  fun  to  see  the  big  fish  make  the 
water  boil  then.  This  six  rod  rope  comes  very  handy  on  a  windy  day  to 
make  a  landing  at  the  house.  I  soon  found  it  was  too  much  of  a  chore  to 
go  so  far  to  feed  the  fish  on  this  floor  regularly,  so  I  took  an  old  eight-day 
clock,  took  out  the  springs  and  in  their  place  put  spools  large  enough  to 
hold  cord  enough  to  run  the  clock  twenty  or  thirty  days  with  weights. 
The  trip  that  sets  the  clock  to  striking  every  hour  I  took  off  and  put  a 
moveable  one  on  the  wheel  that  revolves  every  twelve  hours  and  then  I 
filled  up  eleven  of  the  twelve  holes  in  the  spacing  wheel,  leaving  only  orfe 
hole  open,  so  the  clock  would  only  commence  to  strike  every  twelve  hours 
and  strike  seventy-eight  times — that  is  the  full  amount  of  twelve  hours, 
striking — continuing  to  strike  while  the  spacing  wkeel  would  make  one 
complete  revolution.  I  lengthened  the  main  winding  shaft  and  on  the 
end  I  put  a  wheel  something  like  a  water  wheel  that  would  hold  as  much 
feed  as  I  wanted  to  feed  at  once.  This  wheel  is  placed  under  a  hopper 
that  holds  several  bushels  of  feed.  The  clock  is  set  to  strike  at  any  hour 
in  the  morning  and  evening.  While  the  clock  is  striking  seventy-eight 


128  PRACTICAL    CARP  CULTURE. 

times  the  feed  wheel  revolves  once  and  the  feed  drops  on  a  block  hung 
under  the  wheel  and  scatters  itself  over  the  water  and  sinks  down  on  the 
floor.  I  use  about  an  ounce  hammer  in  the  clock,  on  a  thirty-pound  bell. 
The  fish  come  at  the  ringing  of  the  bell  and  the  regular  time  of  feeding  in 
great  numbers.  HARVEY  BOWEN. 

AN  JEASY  WAY  OF  KEEPING  AN  OPEN  SPACE  IN  A  POND  IN  WINTER. 

ONOVILLE,  N.  Y.,  March  11,  1888. 

My  fish  are  wintering  well;  I  don't  think  I  have  lost  more  than  a 
dozen  or  so,  as  yet,  out  of  nearly  300  small  ones  put  in  the  winter  pond  last 
fall.  I  intend  building  two  more  small  ponds  this  spring.  Near  the  head 
of  my  winter  pond  I  built  a  plank  dam  across  from  one  bank  to  the  other, 
and  made  a  hole  through  it  near  the  bottom,  a  foot  or  more  under  water 
so  the  water  has  to  pass  through  that  hole  and  boils  up  below  the  dam 
and  keeps  the  water  in  commotion,  so  it  will  never  freeze  over  at  that 
point.  At  the  outlet  where  the  screen  is,  I  placed  two  boards  about  three 
feet  long  with  the  out  ends  nailed  together  in  the  form  of  a  letter  V,  as  a 
boom,  in  front  of  the  screen,  catching  all  the  leaves  and  trash;  or  nearly 
all  that  would  otherwise  come  against  the  screen.  It  also  acts  as  a  boiler, 
the  same  as  the  dam  at  the  head  of  pond;  the  water  passes  under  the 
boards,  which  should  be  nearly  a  foot  wide,  and  edgeways  up  and  down ; 
the  water  boils  up  on  the  inside  next  to  the  screen,  so  it  don't  freeze  over. 
I  learned  this  by  accident,  and  it  works  well.  E.  L.  VOLENTINE. 


NOTES   FROM  A  CARP  DIARY. 

NATCHITOCHES,  LA.,  January  26,  1888. 

I  dammed  a  G^-acre  pond  in  the  latter  part  of  December,  1882,  and  on 
January  15,  1882,  I  placed  therein  81  young  carp  received  same  day  from 
the  U.  S.  Fish  Commission.  They  were  from  \}/»  to  4  inches  long.  On 
March  15,  1882,  I  caught  three  in  a  net,  the  largest  one  measuring  7% 
inches.  That  night  a  heavy  rain  flooded  the  pond  and  thousands  of  other 
fish  entered  it.  On  October  15, 1882,  I  caught  one  carp  18  inches  long.  On 
January  9,  1883,  I  received  140  more  carp  from  same  source  and  put  them 
in  same  pond.  On  February  15,  1883,  I  caught  one  carp,  measuring  24)^ 
inches,  and  weighing  7  pounds  dressed.  I  saw  no  more  of  them  until  I 
drained  the  pond  in  January,  1886,  when  I  opened  it  and  found  but  13 
German  carp  in  the  pond,  but  I  had  tons  of  perch,  trout,  catfish,  and  in 
fact,  of  nearly  every  native  variety.  I  placed  my  carp  in  wire  trellis 
boxes  in  another  pond  and  had  mine  thoroughly  cleaned  out,  leaving  only 
young  cypress  trees.  On  February  16,  1886,  work  being  over  and  dam  in 
order  and  sufficient  water,  I  put  my  13  carp  (of  which  only  one  had  scales) 
back  into  my  pond. 

Following  is  the  measurement  and  weight  of  the  13  carp  respectively, 
after  having  been  in  the  boxes  56  days  without  a  particle  of  food : 

No.    1 24  inches — 10  pounds 

No.    2..  ..20      "      —  5      " 


PRACTICAL    CARP  CULTURE.  129 

No.    3 19  "  —4  "  8  ounces 

No.    4 20  "  —  5  "  8      " 

No.    5 20  "  -  4  "  12      " 

No.    6 20  "  —  4  "  8      " 

No.    7 19  "  —  4  "  4 

No.    8 22  "  —  6  "  8 

No.    9  (scale) 20  "  —5  "  4 

No.  10 21  "  —  6  "  8      " 

No.  11 22  "  —6  "  12      " 

No.  12 22  "  —  6  u 

No.  13 20  u  —5  "  8      u 

Tuesday,  June  22,  I  caught  four  mirror  and  two  scale  carp,  measuring 
two  inches  each.  Thursday,  July  22,  I  caught  carp  measuring  3>£  inches, 
and  there  are  thousands  in  the  pond.  Wednesday,  November  17,  1886, 
my  dam  broke,  gophers  having  riddled  it,  causing  the  break.  I  lost 
many  fish,  for  it  ran  four  out  of  seven  feet  of  water  I  had  into  the  river. 
I  again  put  it  up,  and  I  am,  at  this  date,  nearly  overstocked  with  young 
carp.  1  have  sold  as  many  as  40  pounds  in  a  day,  at  10  cents,  on  the  mar- 
ket, and  they  are  a  most  excellent  pan  fish,  and  pronounced  by  true  con- 
noisseurs as  equal  to  the  celebrated  croakers  of  Lake  Ponchartaain,  La. 
My  task  has  not  been  a  light  one,  I  assure  you,  for  I  caught  and  killed 
with  my  own  hands  to  December  31,  1887:  Injurious  water  fowls,  152; 
alligators,  3 ;  mink,  1 ;  large  frogs  and  lampney  eels,  51 ;  turtles,  198 ; 
snakes,  403;  total,  808.  My  pond  varies  in  depth  from  one  inch  to  seven 
feet,  which  last  depth  covers  fully  four  acres  in  area;  the  rest  is  gently 
sloping  on  the  west  and  north  sides  and  deep  on  the  east  and  south.  The 
bottom  is  muck,  not  boggy,  and  not  a  particle  of  vegetation  in  the  pond 
this  year.  I  have  fed  slaughter-house  offal  more  than  of  anything  else, 
and  I  find  them  fond  of  it. 

I  omitted  to  mention  that  during  the  freeze  of  the  15th  and  18th  insts. 
I  lost  about  1,000  young  carp  that  happened  to  be  on  the  shallow  borders 
and  the  sudden  change  caught  them  and  they  perished  in  the  ice,  not  one 
of  them  being  over  five  inches  long.  The  pond  is  only  supplied  by  rain- 
fall. The  water  is  as  good  as  from  a  cistern,  being  used  by  some  neigh- 
bors for  culinary  purposes  and  for  drinking. 

These  few  extracts  are  taken  from  my  diary  on  carp  culture. 

J.  ERNEST  BREDA. 


130 


Seeds !     Seeds ! 

MOODY'g  gEED  STORE, 


It  is  with,  pleasure  that  I  introduce  myself  and  business 
to  the  public  through  this  medium.  My  seed  trade  is  now 
thirteen  years  old,  and  I  have  met  with  such  success  that  I 
am  encouraged  to  put  forth  greater  efforts  to  introduce  my 
seeds  into  new  territory.  *I  am  better  prepared  each  suc- 
ceeding year  to  know  the  wants  of  my  patrons,  and  no  pains 
or  expense  is  spared  to  supply  the  very  best  and  most  reli- 
able seeds  4;hat  this  country  produces.  I  am  supplied  direct 
from  the  most  reliable  growers  in  the  United  States,  and  I 
am  as  choice  of  the  seeds  put  out  as  I  am  of  the  quality  that 
I  sow  in  my  own  garden.  I  am  trying  honestly  and  legiti- 
mately to  extend  my  seed  business,  and  I  bespeak  at  least 
one  trial  from  all  by  whom  this  page  is  read. 

I  have  a  complete  stock  of  everything  in 

Harden,  Field  and  Flower  Seeds 

s 

And  would  be  pleased  to  have  your  name  and  address,  in 
order  that  I  can  mail  to  you  free  our  fine  Illustrated  Cata- 
logue and  valuable  hand  book  of  information  ;  mailed  post- 
paid upon  application.  Address 

3.  JI.  MOODY,  Seedsnrjaii, 

7  E.  Federal  St.  and  47  Public  Square,  YODNGSTOWN,  0. 


'Mr.  Moody  is  one  of  the  most  respected  business  men  of  our  city, 
and  is  not  only  reliable  but  well  and  permanently  established  in  the  seed 
trade.  —The  Author. 


131 


$40,000  $40,000 

U.  n^^^  for  /Vic.  JWrt.  OunWorka.PitUbunrh.?^^ 

WORTH  OF  FINE 

GUNS  aigd  REVOLVERS 

Large  Lot  of  Seines,  Nets,  Netting  and  Twines. 

380  Repeating  and  Breech  Loading  Hunting, 

22  to  45  cal.,  from  $10.00  to  $25.00  each. 
690  Flobert    Rifles,    at  $2-50,  $3.50,    $5.00  and 


200  Old  Kentucky  Muzzle  Loading  Rifles,  all 
sorts  and  sizes,  $8.50  to  $20.00. 

700  Single  Barrel  Shot  Guns,  Muz/le  and 
Breech  Loading,  for  $1.75  to  $14.50  each. 

850  Double  Barrel  Muzzle  Loading  Shot 
(inns,  all  sizes,  lengths,  weight  and  bore, 
and  some  very  fine  ones  among  them, 
$4.75  to  $35.00. 

1150  Double  Barrel  Breech  Loading  Guns  of 
the  best  American,  English  and  German 
makes,  at  all  prices  from  $8-50  to  $100.00 
each.  Many  rare  bargains.  All  sizes 
from  16  to  8  bore,  28  to  40  in.  barrel,  6  to 
10  Ib.  and  some  14  to  16  Ib.  weight. 


$6.50  each 

350  G.  A.  R.  Guns,  for  Posts  and  Companies, 
also  Equipments  for  the  same  at  $2.50  to 


10  Equip 
'.00  a  set. 


810.00  a  se 

240  Single  Barrel  Powder  and  Cartridge  Pis- 
tols, 65c,  to  $2.75. 

1400  Single  Action  Revolvers,  5,  6,  7  shooters, 
at  $1.00  to  $3.50. 

780  Double  Action,  Central  Fire,  Self-Cock- 
ing Revolvers,  at  $2.10  to  $7.50  each,  22,  32, 
30,  44  cal., 


and  a  great  many  other  goods  of  various  kinds  to  be  sold  at  Lower  Prices  than  ever  heard 
of.  Don't  order  till  you  get  our  Illustrated  Catalogue  and  Special  Price  List  which  we  mail 
free  to  anyone  who  "writes  and  mentions  CARP  CULTURE.  Thisisour  Annual  Clearance 
Sale.  The  Goods  are  an  accumulation  or  over  stock,  and  must  be  sold  in  less  than  90  days. 
Send  at  once,  don't  delay,  this  is  a  chance  of  a  lifetime.  Address  J.  H.  JOHNSTON, 

OKREAT  WESTERN  GT71T  WORKS,  621  Smithfield,  Street,  Pittsburs,  Pa. 

POND  SUPPLIES, 

[The  Great  Depot  of  Pond  Supplies,  heretofore  located  at  Hudson,  O.,  and  conducted 
by  W.  S.  Ritchie,  has  been  purchased  by  the  undersigned  and  will  be  run  in  connection 
with  the  MONTHLY  JOURNAL— AMERICAN  CARP  CULTURE.] 

NETS  AND  SEINES  OF  EVERY  DESCRIPTION 

Ir^ods,  Lanes,  Etc. 

AQUATIC  PLANTS,  BULBS  AND  SEEDS, 

FISH  TRAPS  AND  SHIPPING  CANS. 

Catalogue   of  Groods   Sent  for  2   Cent   Stamp. 
Address  L.  B.  LOGAN,  Youngstown,  O. 


132 

ARTESIAN  LAKES 

For  pure  German  Carp,  Short  Horn  Cattle,  Poland  China  Hogs,  Mam- 
moth Bronze  Turkeys,  and  Plymouth  Rock  Chickens.     Call  on  or  address 

JOHN  GOODW1NE,  JR. 
Potomac,  Vermillion  County,  Ills. 

GKNKSSKK  GJII^PEI^V. 

BIOL  O.  COON,  Proprietor,         -        -        -  Little  Genesee,  N.  Y. 


Breeders  and  Fry  of  all  sizes  and  ages,  at  fair  prices.    Correspondence  solicited. 
Orders  promptly  attended  to.    Address  as  above. 

T^A  LARGEST  FISHERIES  IN  THE  STATE.  SEVEN  PONDS. 

1*^  *^>  -fi  *^"»  *">  ^~* 

'    Forty  Acres  of  Water.    All  sizes,    Any  amount,  and  Lowest 
Prices.    Write  for  circular  and  price  list. 

LAKESIDE  CARP  FISHERIES,         -          -          -         Lakeside,  Kans. 


LOUMILLE  gARP  PONDg 


, 

j.  T.  I.  HOOVER.  Proprietor,  Louisville,  Nebraska 

Breeder  of  the  pure  German  Carp,  as  bred  and  raised  in  Germany. 

Breeders  and  Fry  of  all  sizes  constantly  on  hand,  and  for  sale  at  reasonable  prices. 

Write  for  what  you  want.    Address  as  above. 

GERMAN  CARP  FOR  SALE.  ' 

I  can  furnish  any  quantity  of  pure,  high-bred  Scale,  Mirror  and 
Leather  Carp  for  stocking  Ponds.  Spawners  a  specialty.  For  terms  and 
low  prices,  address. 

W.  R.  FRALEY,  Salisbury,  N.  C. 

Parti  Scale  Carp 

Of  various  ages  and  sizes,  for  sale  at  reasonable  prices.  Correspond- 
ence solicited  and  cheerfully  and  promptly  answered. 

JOHN  F.  MOORE, 
Fairchance,  Fayette  County,  Pa. 


i.  IRA  W,  EWART, 

Breeder  of  Merino  Sheep,  Full  Scale  Sennan  Earp,  Shepherd  Dogs,  Bronze 
Turkeys  and  English  Ferrets, 


133 


BAVARIAN  FISHERIES 

VALENTINE  STILLABOWER,  Proprietor.        -        -        Edinburg,  Ind. 

More  than  Twenty  Acres  under  water  cultivation, 

The  Largest  Carp  Hatchery  in  the  West.    Spawners  and  young  Fry  shipped  to  any 
part  of  the  United  States  or  Canadas.    Send  for  circular  and  price  list.    Address  as  above. 


Brook:  Trout  Fishery 

R.  E.  FOLLETT,  PEOP.,  WINDHAM,  CONN. 

Brook  Trout  of  Superior  Quality  Furnished  in  Quantities 

to  Suit  Purchasers. 

G.  BROWN  GOOJ>K,  United  States  Commission  of  Fish  and  Fisheries, 

Commissioner.  Washington,  D.  C.,  Sept.  19th,  1887. 

Richard  E.  Follett,  Ksq.,  Windham,  Conn.: 

In  reply  to  your  Inquiry  as  to  the  quality  of  the  trout  eggs  purchased  by  me  for  the 
Virginia  State  Commission,  I  beg  to  say  that  they  arrived  in  prime  condition,  hatched  out 
good  healthy  fish,  and  with  little  loss.  Twenty-five  hundred  were  distributed  just  after 
beginning  to  feed,  the  rest  retained  until  now,  when  we  have  about  fifty  thousand  fish 
from  three  to  four  inches  long  for  distribution  from  this  lot. 

Very  truly  yours,     [Signed]     M.  MrDONALD,  Com.  Fisheries,  Va. 

T)R.  K.  W.  HUMPIIERYS,  Salisbury.?  Maryland  Fish  Commission, 

<r.  W.  DKLAWDKR,  Oakland.  \  Oakland,  Sept.  19th,  1887. 

R.  E.  Follett,  Esq.: 

My  Dear  Sir:    The  trout  eggs  you  sent  me  last  winter  were  so  well  handled  that  our 
loss  \vas  nothing  in  transportation  and  the  count  was  rather  over  than  under.     In  hatch- 
ing we  obtained  97  per  cent.     I  shall  favor  you  with  more  orders  this  coming  season. 
Verv  truly  yours, 

[Signed]  G.  W.  DELAW1>KH,  Commissioner. 

Specialty  made    of   Eggs,  Young  Fry    and  Yearlings  in    the    Season, 


MUGO   MULERTT. 

M.  C.  Imp.  Russian  Soo.  of  Acclimation.    Author  of  "The  Goldfish  and  its  Culture-." 

No.  64r  Calhoun  Street, 
Opposite  Ohio  Avenue,        -        -        -        -        -        CINCINNATI,  OHIO. 

Telegram  Address,  Gorryville. 
;  FISM  fcind  WATER  PLANTS 

FOR  STOCKING 

AQUARIUMS  /IND  PONDS 

Supplied  in  any  quantity  at  lowest  rates.     Send  for  prices. 


134 


The  only  JOURNAL  in  the  United  States  devoted  to  the  interests  of  carp  culture.  It  isa 
1(>  page,  48 column  illustrated  paper,  published  monthly  at 50 cents  a  year.  It  is  now  (.July, 
1888,)  in  the  fourth  year  of  its  existence,  and  has  subscribers  in  every  State  and  Territory 
in  the  Union,  in  nearly  all  the  Provinces  of  Canada,  and  in  Germany,  England  and 
France.  Its  every  edition  is  replete  with  the  best  experience  of  the  carp  culturists  of  the 
world.  In  its  Question  Department,  all  questions  asked  relative  to  ponds  or  fish  are  an- 
swered free  of  charge.  It  has  a  Natural  History  and  an  Aquarium  Department.  These 
two  departments  are  conducted  by  Hugo  Mulertt,  M.  C.  Imperial  Russian  Society  of  Ac- 
climation, Cincinnati,  O. 

It  has  also  a  Department  of  Natural  Science,  conducted  by  Prof.  K.  W.  Claypole,  of 
Buchtel  College,  Akron,  O.,  author  of  the  chapter  on  the  hearing  offish,  in  this  book.  In 
this  department  all  specimens  of  plants  or  animals  sent  for  inspection  are  classified  and 
named  free  of  charge. 

These  departments  make  the  JOURNAL  valuable  not  only  at  the  pond  side,  but  also 
interesting  in  the  home  as  an  educator  and  instructor. 

We  append  a  few  abstracts  from  letters  of  Fish  Commissioners,  giving  unsolicited  en- 
dorsement: 


Your  JOURNAL  wa> 
Commissioner. 


recommended  to  us  by  Prof.  Spcnc 


F.  Baird,  United  States  Fish 
SCORES  OF  SUBSCRIBERS. 


LUNNKNBURGH,  VT.,  June  28,  188."). 

I  like  your  JOURNAL  and  commend  it  to  those  in  our  Slate  interested  in  carp  culture. 
Our  2-year-old  fish  weigh  two  pounds  and  over.  H.  A.  CuftiNG, 

Fish  Commissioner  for  Vermont. 


NEBRASKA  FISH  COMMISSION,  £OUTH  BEND,  March  8,  188H. 

I  am  highly  pleased  with  the  JOURNAL  OF  CARP  CULTURE,  I  find  it  both  interesting 
and  instructive  to  the  reader,  and  in  fact  it  is  invaluable  to  any  one  who  is  interested  in 
carp  culture.  I  would  be  pleased  to  be  the  means  of  placing  your  Valuable  paper  in  the 
hands  of  every  carp  culturist  in  our  State.  Yours  very  truly,  M.  K.  O'BKfEX,  Supt. 


ST.  PAUL,  July  29,  1886. 

I    have  eaten   carp,  some  of  our  own  raising,  and   I  know  they  are  delicious.     I  shall 
take  pleasure  in  naming  your  paper  to  those  desiring  such.     Very  respectfully, 

ROBT.  OBMSBY  SWEENEY, 
President  Minnesota  State  Fish  Commission. 


135 

ST.  Louis,  Mo.,  April  2, 1887. 

You  will  see  by  our  fourth  bi-ennial  report  that  we  have  recommended  all  fish  cultur- 
ists  to  subscribe  for  your  JOURNAL.  It  is  most  valuable  to  them,  and  would  save  a 
vast  amount  of  correspondence  to  all  Fish  Commissions.  I.  G.  W.  STEEDMAN, 

Chairman  Mo.  Fish  Commission. 

Your  monthly  JOURNAL  is  invaluable  to  those  persons  engaged  in.  carp  culture,  and  it 
will  be  greatly  to  their  interest  to  take  it.  ,S.  FEE,  Fish  Commissioner,  Wamego,  Kan. 


'Your  JOURNAL  is  of  great  service  to  those  interested  in  carp  culture.    HENRY  DOUG- 
LAS, Sandusky,  O.,  Supt.  O.  Fish  Commission. 


J  appreciate  your  JOURNAL  very  highly,  and  wish  every  one  of  our  carp  culturists 
would  take  it.  OTTO  GRAMM,  Fish  Comr.,  Laramie,  Wyo.  Ter. 

If  carp  culturists  only  knew  that  such  a  paper  as  yonvs  was  published  and  of  its  great 
value  to  them,  every  one  of  them  would  subscribe  for  it.  JAS.  NB:VINS,  Madison,  Wis. 
Supt.  Wis.  Fisheries. 


In  condensing  and  compiling  the  experience  of  th«-  carp  growers  of  our  country,  your 
JOURNAL  is  invaluable  to  those  interested  in  the 'culture.  S.  P.  BARTLETT,  Quiricy.  111., 
Secy.  State  Fish  Commission. 

We  might  add  to  these  endorsements,  others  similar  in  character,  from  Fish  Commis- 
sioners or  Superintendents  of  Fisheries  from  every  State  and  Territory  in  the  Union.  But 
space  will  not  permit,  and  these  are  sufficient. 

The  price  of  AMERICAN  CARP  CULTURE  is  50  cents  a  year. 

Address  L.  B.  LOGAN/Youngstown,  O. 

VALUABLE  BOOKS, 

F'or  Farmers  and  Others, 

iSerit  liy  Mail  Postage  Prepaid  on  Receipt  of  Price  t>v 

L.  B.  LOGAN,  Youngstown,  0. 

The  Gold  Fish  and  Its  Systematic  Culture  With  a  View  to  Profit. 

— A  practical  treatise  on  the  fish,  its  propagation,  enemies,  diseases  and  care  of  the  fish,  in 
captivity,  together  with  hints  on  the  construction  of  ponds,  etc.,  by  Hugo  Mulertt,  propa- 
gator of  ornamental  fish  and  aquatic  plants.  Illustrated  with  colored  frontispiece  and  19 
wood  cuts  drawn  from  nature.  This  work  is  so  well  thought  of  in  Europe  that  it  has  been 
translated  into  German,  and  is  now  being  translated  into  Russian.  No  lover  of  orna- 
mrntal  fish  can  afford  to  be  with  out  it.  Price  00  cents. 

How  to  Cook  Fish,  by  HUGO  MULEKTT.— 133  Recipes  for  preparing  sea  and  fresh 

water  fish  for  the  table.    Sixty  pages:  price  2o  cents. 


How  to  Propagate  and  Grow  Kruit,by  CHAS.  A.  GKKEIC.— It  contains  over 
•">U  illustrations  and  two  large,  colored  fruit  plates.  It  tells  how  to  propagate  strawberries, 
raspberries,  blackberries,  currants,  gooseberries,  grapes,  quinces,  peaches, apricots,  plums, 
cherries,  pears  and  apples.  With  illustrations  showing  how  to  bud,  graft  and  propagate 
from  layers,  etc.,  with  lull  instructions  for  grafting  the  grape.  Price,  25  cents. 

Grape  Culture,  by  H.  TKYON.— A  practical  treatise,  giving  full  instructions  how 
to  cultivate,  prune  and  train  the  vine  so  as  to  insure  the  most  perfect 'success.  Price,  25 
cents. 


136 

ABC  of  Potato-culture,  by  T.  B.  TERRY.— It  tells  how  to  grow  potatoes  in  the 
largest  quantity,  and  of  the  finest  quality,  with  the  least  expenditure  of  time  and  labor. 
It  is  not  only  valuable  to  potato-growers,  but  a  great  part  of  it  applies  to  the  management 
of  almost  any  crop  on  the  farm,-  especially  to  the  preparation  of  the  soil,  manures,  etc. 
Price,  10  cents. 

ABC  of  Bee-culture,  by  A.  I.  ROOT.— This  is  a  cyclopaedia  of  everything  per- 
taining to  the  care  of  the  honey-bee,  and  is  valuable  to  the  more  advanced  bee-keeper,  as 
well  as  to  the  beginner.  It  contains  facts  gleaned  from  the  experience  of  thousands  of 
bee-keepers,  all  over  America.  Price,  cloth  binding,  $1.25;  paper,  $1. 

Practical  Turkey  Rearing;,  by  FANNY  FIELD,  the  most  experienced  turkey- 
rearer  in  America.  Written  expressly  for  those  who  are  interested  in  making  the  business 
profitable.  All  turkey-rearers  should  get  it.  Price,  25  cents. 

Poulterer's  Guide,  by  C.  J.  WARD.— It  tells  how  to  treat  diseases  of  poultry,  etc. 
Every  poultry-producer  should  have  it.  Price,  25  cents. 

Kendall'*  Horse  Book.— No  book  can  be  more  useful  to  horse-owners.  It  has  35 
engravings,  illustrating  positions  of  sick  horses,  and  it  treats  all  diseases  in  a  plain  and 
comprehensive  manner.  It  has  many  good  recipes,  etc.  Price,  in  either  English  or  Ger- 
man, 25  cents. 


The  Winter  Care  of  Horses  and  Cattle,—  The  most  humane  and  profitable 
treatment,  by  T.  B.  TERRY.  Price,  40  cents. 

Mr.  Koote.'s  Hand-Book  of  Health.—  It  contains  hints  and  information  of 
the  utmost  importance  concerning  eating,  drinking,  dressing,  sleeping,  bathing,  working, 
etc.  It  tells  how  to  cure  bolls,  burns,  chilblains,  corns,  coughs,  cholera,  diarrhea,  dysen- 
tery, diphtheria,  dyspepsia,  ear-ache,  felons,  headache,  hiccough,  hoarseness,  itching, 
pimples,  piles,  rheumatism,  ringworm,  sore  eyes,  sore  mouth,  sore  throat,  sun-stroke, 
stings  and  insect  bites,  toothache,  ulcers,  whooping  cough,  worms,  etc.  Price,  25  cents. 

"The  Sucker's  Visit  to  the  Mammoth  Cave,"  by  R.  S.  THOMPSON.—  A  real 
commonplace  journey  by  a  real  lover  of  nature,  whose  discernment  of  everything  rich, 
humorous  and  beautiful,  and  whose  graphic  power  to  describe  them  has  made  his  book 
famous.  This  is,  beyond  doubt,  the  most  realistic  and  exhaustive  description  of  the  won- 
ders and  scientific  formation  of  Kentucky's  modern  marvel,  that  has  yet  been  written. 
Price  25  cents. 

Food  Adulteration.—  What  we  eat  and  what  we  should  not  eaf  .    Price,  50  cents. 

Cm  peror  ''William  I.  and  the  German  Empire,  by  .1  \s.  P.  BOYD,  A.  M- 
—  Contents:  The  Dead  Emperor.  German  Unity.  Old  Dreams.  Glimpses  of  a  Real  Ger- 


many.   Germany  of  the  Crusades.    The  Hapsburgs.    The  Hohenzollerns.     Political  Earth- 
quake.    Dawn  of  a  New  Germany.    The  German  Confederation.    The  Coming  Deliverer, 

ire.     Empire  and  Emperor.    At  Berlin—  Bismar 
of  special  interest  at  this  ti  me.    Price,  30  cents. 


.  , 

King  William  I.    Birth  of  the  Empire.     Empire  and  Emperor.    At  Berlin—  Bismarck.    At 
Berlin—  Von  Moltke.    This  book  is  of  special  interest  at  this  ti  me. 


Roscoe  Conltlinjr,  the  Distinguished  American  Statesman  and 
Brilliant  Advocate,  oy  JAMKS  P.  BOYD,  A.  M.  —  The  mental  attainment,  noble  aim, 
pure  official  record,  honorable  political  method  and  sterling  character  of  Roscoe  Conkling 
was  surpassed  by  no  man.  Every  American  citizen  should  read  the  book.  Price,  15  cents. 


S  OF  CREP 


£J  J.  THOMAS,  Pueblo,  Colorado. 
QTTo  SCHISSEL,  Indianapolis,  1  iid. 
Jj^  STILLABOWER,  Edinburg,  Ind. 
JJOHNGOODWINE,  Jr.,  Potomac,  Ills. 

R.  FRALEY,  Salisbury,  N.  C. 
IOL  O'COON,  Little  Genesee,  N.  Y. 

S.  RITCHIE,  Hudson,  Ohio. 


UNIVEESITY  OF  CALIFOENIA  LIBEAEY, 
BEEKELEY 


THIS  BOOK  IS  DUE  ON  THE  LAST  DATE 
STAMPED  BELOW 

Books  not  returned  on  time  are  subject  to  a  fine  of 
50c  per  volume  after  the  third  day  overdue,  increasing 
to  $1.00  per  volume  after  the  sixth  day.  Books  not  in 
demand  may  be  renewed  if  application  is  made  before 
expiration  of  loan  period. 


JIM  27  1924 

z 

<£ 

AUG     1    1946 

§ 

Id 

CQ 

j  ^ 

CO 

CO 

j 

£.  flLr»r'55NlB 

>- 

(L 

a 

1 

^ 

flBfcf  r*j        *r\r-*~  *   ... 

ft: 

DO 

a 

i4Ja'58J  NX 
RECD  UD 


15*82 


t2 
3 
o: 

ui 

Z 


It, 
o 


D 


15m-4,'24 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 


